{"id":16900,"date":"2025-04-08T11:11:00","date_gmt":"2025-04-08T15:11:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/?p=16900"},"modified":"2025-09-14T15:59:10","modified_gmt":"2025-09-14T19:59:10","slug":"from-lyndas-journal_kay-in-the-kitchen-poem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lyndalambert.com\/wordpress\/from-lyndas-journal_kay-in-the-kitchen-poem\/","title":{"rendered":"Lynda’s Journal – poem – Kay in the Kitchen –"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lynda\u2019s Journal <\/strong><\/em><\/h2>\n

~ Kay in the Kitchen ~<\/strong><\/em><\/h3>\n

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The Poem:\u00a0 Kay in the Kitchen<\/strong><\/em><\/h2>\n

Kay in the Kitchen <\/strong><\/em><\/h4>\n

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My cousin Kay is a kitchen queen<\/p>\n

feeling\u00a0 lost at the counter<\/p>\n

searching for car keys<\/p>\n

knee-deep in a kayak stream<\/p>\n

in\u00a0 southern Ohio.<\/p>\n

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Kay sips\u00a0 K-cup coffee<\/p>\n

Travels \u00a0to Keystone state, sometimes.<\/p>\n

Her kettle boils \u00a0like \u00a0a Kafka story<\/p>\n

or a\u00a0 wild night \u00a0of frequent\u00a0 flying.<\/p>\n

Kay is a record-keeper of kites lost in the wind.<\/p>\n

As she gathers thread and squares of fabric<\/p>\n

Kay\u00a0 crafts\u00a0 \u00a0them all together.<\/p>\n

Keeps\u00a0 stitching\u00a0 until her quilts look<\/p>\n

like Kandinsky\u2019s gestural paintings,<\/p>\n

Gathers her mementos into keep-sakes<\/p>\n

knitting each kindness into lyrical lines<\/p>\n

like \u00a0the smooth flow of a Keats poem.<\/p>\n

–<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

NOTE:<\/p>\n

This poem is a collection of fragments I\u00a0 observed over a number of years, with several friends and family members who had dementia.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

I created this fictional poem in response to a writing prompt given to a group of poets.\u00a0 The Challenge was to write a poem using the letter “K” during National Poetry Month several years ago.\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

As I was composing this poem, I was writing the letter, “K” as often as I could work it into the story of the poem.\u00a0 Because we have a number of friends and family members who suffered with dementia, I wanted to describe the fragmentation of the mind and how it changes the perception in creative people I have known personally.\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

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In fact, in January 2024, my husband died after\u00a0 eleven years of treatments for Acute Myeloid Leukemia.\u00a0 From the beginning of the intense treatments in April 2014, he began showing symptoms of dementia.
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I wanted to write this poem to give an intimate\u00a0 view of the lives of people I know\u00a0 who are challenged\u00a0 and changed over a period of years with dementia.\u00a0 My hope in this poem is to create a feeling of their struggles to piece together their creative lives despite the fragmentation of memory.<\/p>\n

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Published: 2024.<\/h2>\n
Anthology, Mingled Voices ;8\u00a0<\/em> (Page 72)\u00a0
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International Proverse Poetry Prize\u00a0 Anthology 2023;<\/p>\n

Proverse (Hong Kong) (2024)<\/p>\n

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__Lynda’s Bio and non-fiction story will appear in :<\/strong><\/h5>\n
Food, Flowers, Medicine: And Other Gifts From the Garden, Anthology, 2025<\/em><\/h5>\n

SOON to be RELEASED – Stay Tuned for MORE information soon.<\/p>\n

Lynda McKinney Lambert writes and creates visual art from her vintage home in the Village of Wurtemburg, in Western Pennsylvania. She writes poetry and personal nonfiction essays. She currently has six published books available at all retail booksellers. Her artworks have appeared in international exhibitions, including Japan, New Guinea, Austria, and the United States.\u00a0 Lynda retired from her position as Professor of Fine Art and Humanities at Geneva College in 2008 due to profound sight loss. She invites readers to discover the subtle nuances\u00a0 and beauty of a physical and spiritual world as she weaves strands from history, nature, and her personal life experiences.<\/p>\n

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Copyright \u00a9 2025, Lynda McKinney Lambert.\u00a0 All rights reserved.<\/em>
\nYou are receiving this email because you opted in at my website.<\/p>\n

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Your comments are always welcome.<\/p>\n

Let me know what you think.<\/p>\n

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