Ditchdiggers

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Ditchdiggers

Like lean giraffes about the building site,
With questing noses tilted to the sky,
They stand, a still and silent little herd,
And let the world go by...

Until the whistle blows.  And then they turn
With lowered heads, travel and work and wheel,
Grabbing great gobbets of the yellow clay
To toss it into trucks, tireless as steel...

Until the whistle blows again.  And then,
With noses tilted up against the sky,
They stand, a still and silent little herd,
And let the world go by.

~ Lydia Pender

I wanted to post a poem about work for Labor Day and finally decided on this one, even though it's talking about machines that are working, not people.  I love the image of diggers as a giraffe herd!  I've always been reminded of long-necked dinosaurs, myself, but I can also see them as giraffes.

Wishing you all a wonderful Labor Day!