Old Poem Saturday – Life – Treasone

Life_TreasoneIIIt is a great pleasure to be able to revisit this particular short poem and update my post about it. When I presented this poem back in March of this year (you can click here to travel back in time to it), I mentioned that the poet herself was a bit of a mystery. Despite the inclusion of this poem in multiple anthologies and the wide debate about the usage of metaphor in poetry it provokes, the only information about Ms. Treasone I could find was a two-line obituary for a woman of the same name that did not mention poetry.  But not long ago her daughter, Ellen, contacted me and let me know that it was her mother’s obituary and that I made the correct identification. I asked if I could share her note with you all, and she agreed.

She wrote, “I told her how proud I was of her for writing such a poem that would make people think, although it was very short, she told me it just meant; life is hard & a struggle and if you can figure out a way to cope and remember your mistakes, you can have a chance at happiness in your heart.”

A lovely sentiment – and I couldn’t agree more. I redesigned my illustration to reflect a mandala. Photo collage and composition by me, poem by Ms. Grace Marie Treasone (1925-2011), a poet and resident of Sarasota, Florida.

10 comments

    1. You are so welcome! I agree – it is a treasure that we get to hear Ms. Treasone’s voice. I hope this will constitute a small digital record for her and her poem.

      Like

      1. Marcy, what a beautiful reflection you have cast on us all with my Moms poem, once again, Thank you!, Ellen ☺

        Like

      2. Dear Ellen, it is my pleasure! Thank you again for taking the time to contact me and share your memories of your mother and the reasons she wrote the poem. It means a lot to me and so many others!

        Like

  3. I love the circle that was closed when you got the whole story, and how the mandala echoes that. And I loved this poem the first time, too, glad to see it again. What a nice thing this was to read.

    Like

    1. Thank you, Claudia! That’s how I felt too – it was all the stages of life in a story behind four short lines – our creative living years, children, death, and then the life that goes on after we are gone. I wanted the illustration to reflect that feeling.

      Like

Comments are closed.