I have sharpened my knives, I have
Put on the heavy apron.
Maybe you think life is chicken soup, served
In blue willow-pattern bowls.
I have put on my boots and opened
The kitchen door and stepped out
Into the sunshine. I have crossed the lawn.
I have entered
The hen house.
Mary Oliver is using the farm in this poem to symbolize life and death. When Oliver says “I have sharpened my knives”, she might be saying that she is getting ready for death. When she crosses the lawn she is crossing over to death.
Farm Country