Even Prompter

Hymn to the Restorers

Hymn to the Restorers

I watch videos of men repairing cars
found abandoned in dusty old barns;
these men do not care where they go or how far,
classic and aged must be protected from harm.

Found abandoned in dusty old barns,
the rusty old heaps are dragged from their rest,
classic and aged must be protected from harm,
home to the workshop to recover their best.

The rusty old heaps are dragged from their rest,
their engines are tickled and coaxed till they start,
home to the workshop to recover their best,
electrics and fuel must reach their old hearts.

Their engines are tickled and coaxed till they start,
There is joy in the eyes at ignition;
electrics and fuel must reach their old hearts,
the goal of the men is nearing fruition.

There is joy in the eyes at ignition,
the bodies all washed and polished until clean,
the goal of the men is nearing fruition,
insides restored and brought to a sheen.

So the car is revived and back on the streets,
these men do not care where they go or how far,
we see on the faces accomplishment sweet,
I watch videos of men repairing cars.


Line count: 24
Form: Pantoum
For Promptly Poetry Challenge, Week 29 2023
Prompt: The pantoum consists of a series of quatrains rhyming ABAB in which the second and fourth lines of a quatrain recur as the first and third lines in the succeeding quatrain; each quatrain introduces a new second rhyme as BCBC, CDCD. The first line of the series recurs as the last line of the closing quatrain, and the third line of the poem recurs as the second line of the closing quatrain, rhyming ZAZA.
Note: I cannot resist including a link to just one video by my favourite restorer, a man who goes by the nickname of Mustie1. I must warn you on two counts - it is long (restoring old cars is not the work of a moment) and highly addictive.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1_Obz8aDOw&t=5231s