I’m the woman who walks to the mailbox everyday
whose life you imagine when you drive by and wave
The one collecting sticks for kindling as she walks
who stops reciting poetry out loud when she sees you
The homebody in house clothes with dirt smudged at the hips
seen swinging her arms up over her head
because studies have shown that symphony conductors
live longer than the rest of us
By Colleen Redman
Colleen Redman writes and provides photography for The Floyd Press newspaper. Her poetry has been published nationally, regionally and online and has most recently appeared in Artemis Journal and Floyd County Moonshine. Her photography, poetry and writing are regularly featured on her blog, looseleafnotes.com, where her bio reads: From the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia I write to synthesize what I'm learning at the time, whether it be poetry, a political commentary, or a letter to my mother in Hull, Massachusetts, where I'm originally from. Whenever I don't know exactly what it is I'm doing, and it borders on wasting my time, I call it research. 'Dear Abby, How can I get rid of freckles?' was my first published piece at the age of 11. Her email address: