Blog of the Week ~ Gail at the Farm

This week, my friends , we are visiting with Gail Williams, who writes at GAIL AT THE FARM. We visited Gail in early 2014, at her wonderful heritage farm in Arkansas. I so enjoyed the visit, I thought we'd stop back, and hear some more about the hard work and simple joys of living closely with and on the land. Come join me - we're arriving to a flurry of greetings from several dogs, and I could not be happier.

  

Sherry: Gail, in our last interview, we talked about how you and your husband live on your 147-acre heritage farm in Arkansas, that has been in your family for generations.  I know you have reduced your workload by re-homing your livestock, as you and your husband are now retired. For our newer members, might you give us a snapshot of your life on the farm these days?

The old house that was Grandma's 

and Grandpa's, then Dad's

Gail: I don't know what to say. It is a great honor to be here again. History is clear and trim. We plant patches of winter food for the wildlife. Take rides on the Gator, fish, work and play. Two daughters, three grandsons, Sister next door and another lives in town.

Now we don’t have big animals to feed but there is always work. We love the outdoors. We stay very busy here even without livestock. 

What's left of the 200 year old barn

There are buildings to repair and fences to mend.  We grow food plots each year for the wild game. We trim trees and cut down dead ones.  We have pecans and Black Walnuts ready to pick up now for our own use.  Pawpaws and persimmons are ripe, and our garden still is producing peppers and tomatoes.  I fear our winter greens will feed only the wild life. We grow food plots each year for the wild game. A good rain would help the growth of them tremendously.

Sherry: I love that you grow food for the wildlife! I wish more people thought of the hungry winter critters.  When we last spoke, your pack consisted of many dogs. (You are so lucky!) How many  are still with you? There were nine, I believe, when we last chatted.

Gail: Maggie Mae, the Other Woman and TP, Dad’s dog, have passed. We currently have Bonnie, an American Pit Bull Terrier, Diamond Lil, a short-haired Border Collie, Squiggie, Ki-Anne, Junior and Lizzy...the last four are rescues.

Sherry: I know your dogs are working dogs, that teach each other, and guard the farm. It is great you have rescues, Gail. They must be so happy on your land. Dog heaven.

Let’s take a look at a couple of your poems, my friend.

Tse' bighanilini or Antelope Canyon

The place

where water runs through rocks

called me

a quest for truth and life

i answered alone

the flute

drew me

deeper

inside the canyon

inside myself

where Holy People walked

after the last flood

in the time of First Man

and First Woman

the singers echoed

i tried to follow

but the rock

belied location

in that walk

i became the music

the air

the rock

a true Earth Surface soul

and i was healed

I connected to a native American healing song here. I visited the southwest two summers ago and felt I had entered a magical world. Somehow the lack of visible life made me feel closer to the land....if that makes any sense.

Sherry: It makes complete sense. I have seen photos of Antelope Canyon, and can well imagine the feeling of being in such an ancient, sacred place.

Gail: This next poem was written for a prompt at Poets United.

Good Poetry Is...

a rock that shines in the shadows

a tree that bends with no wind

a water plant in drought

stardust in your hair

water droplets after a rain

"good" poetry comes

writing itself

leaving me surprised

and breathless

with its truth.

good poetry

spews and bubbles

like a science student volcano

and grows and flows

i transcribe the dictation

and when its finished

i step back and read

filled with joy

and say, Wow!

who wrote that?

Sherry: That is exactly how it is! I love it! Are you still painting, Gail? Any new paintings you might wish to share?

Gail: Here are two paintings I last did. I guess you could call this my dark period! I am also working with dimensional art.

Barbed wire was my last medium. My husband and I have made some wreaths for The Shop. 

This is a barbed wire art piece I will not sell. It is a lawn piece with rusted pliers for pretend birds.

I’m working to improve my found dragon, (a large cedar tree), as  yard art.

Sherry: Oh, tell us about it! It does look like a dragon!

Gail: I was walking the dry creek and saw a wonderful old weathered tree almost like driftwood.  Time worn cedar with amazing roots.  Here is a post about how we had to move it and get it home. The photo is how she sits.  I am waiting for her to tell me what she wants.

Sherry: I know she is grateful to have had her wings unearthed and liberated. From burial to yard art - we should all be so lucky, LOL.

Gail: Of course I’m always playing in my water gardens. Sometimes that feels like art to me.

Mostly we have been trying to get all the buildings back into shape with organization and repairs. This has been a far bigger job than I anticipated.

Sherry: I know there is a lot of hard work, but your farm looks like heaven to me!

This is a sign my sister brought home

Gail: We were put on hold last November when my youngest daughter was in a car wreck. The motorist was uninsured so that added insult to injury. Maria and Zander were with us seven months during her recovery. There was not much extra time to do things.

Sherry: I'm so sorry about the accident, and am happy she made a good recovery. I imagine you are readying the farm for winter, now.

Gail: This fall, the weather has been so beautiful, I have been taking advantage of that by doing outside projects for a while now. I know, soon, it may be too cold to do all these things. Come winter, I will paint, sew, crochet, and read.

Sherry: And write poems!

She Walks

She walks
In the clear
To avoid
The muddy
Turbulence
That is
Her life

Never looking up
She strolls
Splashing
In tall boots
Pretending
This is real
Not the murky water

In this moment
She walks on rocks
Never disturbing
Silt nor mud
Nor secrets
And thinks
This is how it should be

Sherry: Sigh. The rightness of living on the land. Gail, this has been wonderful. You are living my dream.  In closing, is there anything you’d like to say to Poets United?

Gail: I have grown, with your support and help. I really appreciate having a place to go when I think I have no words. With your creative prompts, I probably write too much now. Thank you to each and every one of you for the moral support in my attempt to write well.

Sherry: It is a pleasure to have you among us, Gail. Thank you for this visit to your wonderful homestead. It has been so enjoyable, having this glimpse into your very fulfilling life.

Did this not feel like a visit home, kids? Sigh. I love these weekly trips to our fellow poets. Do come back and see who we talk to next. Who knows? It might be you!