With every fibre of my being - there is no getting away from it!- Epilogue
Ever since I have known her my wife has had a large bag of odd pieces of /sober or highly coloured brocade out of which she has meant to construct a patchwork quilt. The bag used always to accompany us on week-ends or on longer travels but the patchwork quilt has never got patched, though the bits of material were often laid out and admired; this and adding to them has obviously given my wife much pleasure.
This section represents a similar ragbag of my poetical memory, pieces of poems that have been put away and are sometimes pulled out to sort over; or little bits are added. I never meant to make a patchwork quilt of them though they are no more oddly assorted than my wife's pieces of brocade. Some of her friends used to enjoy looking through her brocade ragbag, perhaps some of my readers may like to turn over my poetical ragbag.
A.P. Wavell.
I was intrigued to come across a collection of poems, ‘Other Men’s Flowers’ [‘I have gathered a posse of other men’s flowers and nothing but the thread that binds them is my own’ Montaigne] compiled by General Wavell. He likened it to his wife’s ‘Rag Bag’ - a collection of fabrics she carried with her wherever they travelled.
Her intention was to make up a patchwork from the various pieces. In fact simply handling the damasks, brocades etc from time to time gave her, and their friends, enormous satisfaction. They were returned to the Rag Bag until the next appropriate occasion, very much like his anthology of memories.
- My “Rag Baskets” I carry with me on my travels.
I can identify with this as I still have an enormous amount of textiles including a collection of ‘Utility’ ones, table linen, sheets, bolts of fabric, even stockings & men’s braces, with their characteristic double cheese CC41 labels.
