Don't Drink Bees

Lazy afternoon
Lying on my parents' bed
Examining their quilt
For the umpteenth time

My mother patiently explaining
Each patch that she sewed
By hand
Knotting the corners

Old party dresses she wore
Ties she made for my father
Playsuits for my brother
Dresses for myself
Doll blankets and bonnets

Every pattern has a story
To tell
Each is a leftover remnant
From our lives

With needle and thread
My mother painstakingly
Arranged our family album
Our scrapbook
Our lives
In small even squares

So we could spend
Lazy afternoons
Sprawled across her bed
Remembering

Listening to the stories
That my mother patiently tells
For the umpteenth time