Dishes by Tanya Standish McIntyre

October 12, 2022
Poem name: Dishes Poet name: Tanya Standish McIntyre Poem: The women stood with their hands in the water, their backs to the voices, other messes—sometimes glancing at what lay out the window, or for some not a window, but a mirror they could check in for improved or worsened lines—sometimes for after, there was an Avon hand-cream dispenser, in the shape of a bird or an ear of corn. The women stood with their hands in the water, in all kinds of weather (except lightning)—sometimes they hurried to be finished for the next task or just to sit down—most often they were unaware of the dishes, beyond the deeming of dirty or clean, and sometimes they stood there, with slowed deliberation, so feelings could arrange into acceptable phrases before turning to face the room. Sometimes things broke down there, and cut them in the murky water; sometimes it would not go down even by the will of the plunger—sometimes their rings slipped off from the soap, and their hands were strange and nervous, but a thing they never, ever did, regardless of their age or the hour, was to get into bed before their sink was empty, dried, and polished. End of poem. Credits and bio: Copyright © Tanya Standish McIntyre Previously published in Anthology: Emergence: 24 Contemporary Women Poets of Quebec’s Eastern Townships, edited by Angela Leuck. Tanya Standish McIntyre is a poet and visual artist living in the Eastern Townships of Quebec. Her debut collection, The House You Are Born In, is forthcoming in McGill-Queens University Press’s Hugh MacLennan Poetry Series in Fall ‘22. Drawing upon memories of her early years on an ancestral farm, an early review calls it: “A stunning debut by a promising new poetic voice, haunting and uplifting in equal measure.” Visit her website at tanyastandishmcintyre.com.