Jan has this week’s Poetry Friday Roundup — the MLK edition — at bookseedstudio.
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13 thoughts on “Poetry Friday: A Skill From My Unofficial Resume”
Mary Lee, I love this on so many levels!! I especially love the rhythm and rhyme throughout, especially those amazing last lines: “Unknotting is a little known work of the heart,/truly an unsung art.” So beautiful!!!!
I like all the back and forth builds between the lines both metaphorically and with sounds, your title, and pausing and giving space rings out, thanks Mary Lee.
Mary Lee, your blog title let me know that knitting was your topic – so clever inserting the word resume. As you weaved your words, I eagerly approached each stanza that offered an easy route to follow. Untying knots is not easy but with patience it is undone. I often think of knots as struggles in life so in 2026, I will try to untie ones that cause stress. With faith and gratitude, I will send my wishes forth. Thank you for the ending of your poem that fills my heart with eagerness and positivity.
As ‘unknotting’ is an art of a teacher, and I know you were, I’m taking this for those who guide their students, “carefully” and “gradually” to the awesome ending and it “is” “a little known work of the heart”, Mary Lee. Of course, others may apply! It’s a poem of wonder, for those who might apply it elsewhere, too!
Mary Lee, What a glide this poem is. I would replace the title with your post title & Send It Out! The symbolism the rhythm, the rhyme – it’s sublime. And on a topic not often seen done well [ if ever] in poetry & this is tops.
Your wordplay here is tiptop, my dear, and I love how this poem is tied to the one Tabatha excerpted in her holiday letter–“Tangled” by Jan Richardson. I can’t find it but it goes
“I do not know
any mercy
but that is comes
to us tangled,
any blessing
but that it comes
to us bound with
every other thing.
Praise
to the tangle.
Praise
to the knots.”
I will bear both in mind the next time I “huff the puff of defeat.”
Oh, it is! It’s something I’ve been getting better at with age, as I learn to slow down, to breathe deeply, to take my time, which is not my natural inclination…. 😉
A(nother) Year of Reading 
Mary Lee, I love this on so many levels!! I especially love the rhythm and rhyme throughout, especially those amazing last lines: “Unknotting is a little known work of the heart,/truly an unsung art.” So beautiful!!!!
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Unknotting is a special skill, indeed! I love the line about “the work of the heart” which often gets tangled and in need of repair.
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I like all the back and forth builds between the lines both metaphorically and with sounds, your title, and pausing and giving space rings out, thanks Mary Lee.
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An unsung art indeed, Mary Lee. I love every layer of this poem.
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Mary Lee, your blog title let me know that knitting was your topic – so clever inserting the word resume. As you weaved your words, I eagerly approached each stanza that offered an easy route to follow. Untying knots is not easy but with patience it is undone. I often think of knots as struggles in life so in 2026, I will try to untie ones that cause stress. With faith and gratitude, I will send my wishes forth. Thank you for the ending of your poem that fills my heart with eagerness and positivity.
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I love this poem. How the unknotting can have multiple meanings, but those darn yarn knots drive me crazy!
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As ‘unknotting’ is an art of a teacher, and I know you were, I’m taking this for those who guide their students, “carefully” and “gradually” to the awesome ending and it “is” “a little known work of the heart”, Mary Lee. Of course, others may apply! It’s a poem of wonder, for those who might apply it elsewhere, too!
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I really love this (and I especially love the title of your blog post). 🙂
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Mary Lee, What a glide this poem is. I would replace the title with your post title & Send It Out! The symbolism the rhythm, the rhyme – it’s sublime. And on a topic not often seen done well [ if ever] in poetry & this is tops.
your fan,
jan
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Charming, Mary Lee! xo
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Your wordplay here is tiptop, my dear, and I love how this poem is tied to the one Tabatha excerpted in her holiday letter–“Tangled” by Jan Richardson. I can’t find it but it goes
“I do not know
any mercy
but that is comes
to us tangled,
any blessing
but that it comes
to us bound with
every other thing.
Praise
to the tangle.
Praise
to the knots.”
I will bear both in mind the next time I “huff the puff of defeat.”
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I have a couple of dear people in my life who are “untangler of knots” — This is a beautiful ode, Mary Lee.
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Oh, it is! It’s something I’ve been getting better at with age, as I learn to slow down, to breathe deeply, to take my time, which is not my natural inclination…. 😉
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