After wrapping the present,
mom would pull ribbon from a roll
and wrap it around the gift.
She’d tie a knot at the top,
then ask for my finger
to hold the ribbon in place
while she fashioned the double knot.
Eventually I learned what Mom knew—
it’s not hard to tie a ribbon alone.
Still, the loan of a finger is lovely.
Lovelier still, partnership.
This is what you do for me.
Though you’re far away,
sometimes when I find myself trying
to, oh, wrap things up,
I feel, perhaps, an invisible hand
reaching in to help where I most need it.
How much easier the work is then,
such a gift, to meet the present together.
Brings to mind the phrase “guided by unseen hands” – have felt that many times in my life, and always was comforted.
yes, very similar, that guidance, those unseen hands.
A nice loopty-loop bend on words with the present, and a finger on loan, as it were. Yes here we are through screens (divining rods) searching each other out, in a sense. Glad for that! For combining and sharing. Happy Monday to you and your crew!
thanks Bill! Yes, these small, intimate moments are so important–especially now that we are not together, they feel extra special! Happy monday to you …
I remember that motion so well. I have never made as tight a knot as my mother and I made together.
teamwork!