Puritan Kitchen, Then & Now

Always, the kitchen--

crafted in oak,

bluestone & pewter--

command central,

veritable heart ‘n soul,

where it all went down.

Wide floorboards

softened by generations

of slippers

pacing rag rugs, words

chosen with precision

to make a case.

Whither she goest

or won’t she, will they

say yes or no?

The same kitchen,

same desires, worries,

wonderings & wanderings.

All of which argue in favor

of just curling up by the fire.

Mrs. James Ward Thorne (American, 1882-1966)

Massachusetts Living Room and Kitchen, 1675-1700

from Art Institute of Chicago, Thorne Miniature Rooms

For Margaret’s prompt to the Real Toads: It’s All About Place