Heirlooms Remembered

It was a chilly crisp day

I let my thoughts fade away.

The water flows over my hands

As I grab the wet fabric bands.

The soap residue sticks to my skin

My hands not as wrinkled as they could have been.

When the clothes finish with the wash

I run it through the wringers to be squashed.

Those wood rollers pressed and turned with the wheel

The clothes slid under like a reel.

Then one day we bought a motor

That turned the wheel over and over.

All you had to do was slide the clothes under

And listen to the little motor thunder.

There was a safety lever to stop it on the right,

If you pulled that...