In these freezing conditions I caught sight of these icicles and William Shakespeare came to mind - I learnt this at school! Do kids still learn poetry at school? I do hope so! Poetry can be very healing - it can touch our souls and speak to the spirit within us and help to heal our wounds.
WHEN icicles hang by the wall
And Dick the shepherd blows his nail,
And Tom bears logs into the hall,
And milk comes frozen home in pail;
When blood is nipt, and ways be foul,
Then nightly sings the staring owl
Tu-whoo!
Tu-whit! tu-whoo! A merry note!
While greasy Joan doth keel the pot.
When all around the wind doth blow,And coughing drowns the parson's saw,
And birds sit brooding in the snow,
And Marian's nose looks red and raw;
When roasted crabs hiss in the bowl—
Then nightly sings the staring owl
Tu-whoo!
Tu-whit! tu-whoo! A merry note!
While greasy Joan doth keel the pot.
What does "keeling the pot" mean? Will someone let me know?
I put this poem on my blog a year ago but with new photos I thought it warranted a second airing.
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2 comments:
I was always told it mean 'scour' but some say it's to do with brewing and cooling a boiling pot by adding cold water to stop it boiling over.. Seems less likely in the circumstances and much more likely it's the chapped and blistered hands of greasy old Joan scrubbing out the pans with no hot water, no marigolds and no washing up liquid. Perhaps the greasy isn't Joan but the horrid job she's doing!
Yes thank you Camilla - scouring certainly sounds the most likely meaning. I like the image you conjure up of greasy old Joan!!
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