The sickle lies in the antique shop
ash-wood handle split and loose
cast aside and with contempt
thousand years it gave us bread,
far more than swords and axes,
swung by women and their children,
helped by men between the wars,
rarely fought in autumn.
The Russians have it on their flag
flying with the hammer......
no guns on the blood red standard.
But here it lies,blunt,leaning on the wall
going for six pound fifty.
Stay awhile and doff your hat
to the labourer who swung this blade
bright and sharp,grey stone in his pocket
blacksmith,fire and quenching water,
taken home each night,wrapped in oily rag,
set beside the kitchen door and heavy boots,
coat behind the door,clip-rug on the floor
children round the table,smiling in the fire light
fresh baked bread and soup,
pray for sun tomorrow.
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la_spice
- 2009-06-07 @ 07:18:03
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loveslifeloveschocolate
- 2009-06-07 @ 08:19:35
I love hand tools and because of conservation have a nice range in the garage. One of my favourites is the grass scythe which looks huge and unweildly but is actually easy to use with a properly sharpened blade (pictured here http://www.thescytheshop.co.uk/). Alan Garner wrote a book in which he describes the harvest being cut and the men singing and cutting to the tune.
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The sickle and the scythe are the two most important tools ever invented. Without them humankind would have starved and without the unsung labourers who wielded them
the blacksmiths who forged these two tools were as clever as the Japanese sword makers each tool being made of two kinds of iron sandwiched together. When managing an estate I built up a collection of hand hoes a fascinating group of agricultural and horticultural implements many of the designs revived to whet gardeners' appetites.
If you have visited York you will have seen the moats around the City walls. In my teens these were cut by Sid and one other,whose name I cannot recall,using scythes and wooden hay rakes to pull the hay down the slopes. I was always amazed that they did not injure themselves.There was a slow rhythm as they swung the blade.
In terms of conservation the scythe being a slow and silent means of cutting herbage animals and insects have the opportunity to escape with tractor flailing they freeze and crouch down only to have their backs ripped open
Thanks for your interest.
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- 2009-06-08 @ 21:22:35
good evenıng
Turkeyb ıs fıne
hotel ıs good
weather ıs hot ....... speak soon -
Good morning.enjoy
Nice one