Are you familiar with the term ” hand-me-downs ” ? For those of us who are , it epitomizes a way of life that seems to have faded into a form of casual oblivion ! However, with this disappearance we lose a huge chunk of the basic tenets of our American heritage, our raison d’ etre. I’ve been wearing ” castoffs ” for the better part of my life, which is why and how I learned early to boldly ” cut and sew ” or to turn used sweaters into vests and ” bobby sox “. I was taught to knit and crochet by the age of eight and to weave by ten. It was ” disgraceful ” to discard any object that displayed even the faintest signs of ” resurrection “. Recently, I was thrilled to watch a TV program about the recycling of orange peels into feed for cattle ( chock full of vitamins ). Bravo ! When I was first married, my favorite place to shop was called, the ” Salvation Army ” , and every item chosen became a labor of love ! Each eventually made its way into a ” family heirloom ” or a garage sale, thats American ingenuity and entrepreneurship ! I must admit that as my sons entered grade school, I ceased ” making ” their clothing but they did wear ” hand-me-downs ” for an extensive time after. The result of which is that the youngest of four remains to this day a vision of sartorial splendor ! Hmm, I wonder why?
Sincerely,
Claire B.
Claire V. Bogdanos 
DATELINE: Hoboken, NJ USA “NIGHTINGALES” ( 2013 ) 2013/07/07
Tags: Blog, Blogging, Commentary, Memories, Naidu Sarojini, Opinions, Poem, Poet, Poetry, Sassoon Siegfried, Writing
In 1945, I stumbled upon a poem, “Transcience” by a poet, Sarojini Naidu. I was unaware that she was a woman or that she was so very special. However, my hungry mind gravitated to her incredible thoughts and words. In my effort to commit them to memory, I devised a plan by using the first 4 words of each of 3 stanzas and it worked. “Nay, do not grieve, Nay do not pine, Nay, do not weep,” now here we are almost 70 years later and with this single device I am able to recall that piece without hesitation. I find that time has not diminished its value or the consolation it carried in its rhythmic style to alleviate the almost unbearable tragedy of that era and its world impact ! This reminds me of another man of note and pathos, Siegfried Sassoon of World War I, still one more voice in the “wilderness “along with a cadre of others. Oddly enough both of these poets shared similarities, born late 1800’s , died after WWII concluded,educated in England and rooted in Indian culture with a passion for peace. Both deserve your attention and respect ! Please allow me to close with the last 4 lines of my personal favorite:
“Nay, do not weep; new hopes,new dreams,new faces,
The unspent joy of all the unborn years,
Will prove your heart a traitor to its sorrow,
And make your eyes unfaithful to their tears.”
by Sarojini Naidu
And so again, we find another facet of magic words in the hands of “word warriors” not to be ignored. I find myself compelled to think of one greater, the Preacher,Solomon, have you read him lately? That’s Ecclesiastes !
Sincerely,
Claire B.
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