[Old Mother turns blue and from us]

By Lorine Niedecker 1903–1970 Lorine Niedecker

Old Mother turns blue and from us,

“Don’t let my head drop to the earth.

I’m blind and deaf.” Death from the heart,

a thimble in her purse.

“It’s a long day since last night.

Give me space. I need

floors. Wash the floors, Lorine!—

wash clothes! Weed!”

Lorine Niedecker, “[Old Mother turns blue and from us]” from Collected Works, edited by Jenny Penberthy, Copyright © 2002 Regents of the University of California. Published by University of California Press.

Source: Collected Works (University of California Press, 2004)

Biography

Niedecker's verse is praised for its stark, vivid imagery, subtle rhythms, and spare language, which Kenneth Cox described as "whittled clean." Concerned with the distillation of images and thoughts into concise expression, Niedecker described her work as a "condensery," and several critics have compared her poetry to the delicate yet concrete verse of Chinese and Japanese writers. Although Niedecker's long correspondence with

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