By Marilyn Walker

A clothesline was a news forecast            
To neighbors passing by.                     
There were no secrets you could keep         
When clothes were hung to dry.               
                                             
It also was a friendly link                  
For neighbors always knew                    
If company had stopped on by                 
To spend a night or two.                     
                                             
For then you'd see the fancy sheets          
and towels on the line;                      
You'd see the comp'ny tableclothes           
With intricate design.                       
                                             
The line announced a baby's birth            
To folks who lived inside                    
As brand new infant clothes were hung        
So carefully with pride.                     
                                             
The ages of the children could               
So readily be known                          
By watching how the sizes changed            
You'd know how much they'd grown.            
                                             
It also told when illness struck,            
As extra sheets were hung;                   
Then nightclothes, and a bathrobe, too,      
Haphazardly were strung.                     
                                             
It said, "Gone on vacation now"              
When lines hung limp and bare.               
It told, "We're back!" when full lines sagged
With not an inch to spare.                   
                                             
New folks in town were scorned upon          
If wash was dingy gray,                      
As neighbors raised their brows, and looked  
Disgustedly away.                            
                                             
But clotheslines now are of the past         
For dryeres make work less.                  
Now what goes on inside a home               
Is anybody's guess                           
                                             
I really miss that way of life.              
It was a friendly sign                       
When neighbors knew each other best          
By what hung on the line!                    

Copyright ©2000 Marilyn Walker