the town that raised me
i wandered down
the streets i knew
i had walked them
many times before
each intricately drawn
inside my head
from many moons ago
in the darkness
shops were closed
and dinners done
the town essentially
belonged to me
a winter’s night
with streets aglow
pretty bows
window stories
and lovely trees
adorned with
giant lighted balls
the perfect christmas charm
so strange
it felt like yesterday
i stood in this exact same spot
a serendipitous awe
of christmas magic
to share with all
the folks i loved in this town
the only home i knew
lost hearts were found
most hearts full
all abound
in everyone whose eyes met mine
as we gazed up to the sky
with a childlike wondering eye
christmas time
i am a stranger now
no one knows
who i am
or where i've been
or in this moment
my reasons why
so i took a deep breath
and exhaled a long sigh
i took my time
i visualized the ghosts
i knew
and what was here
and over there
what has changed
and what remained
much the same inside the frame
of years before
a canvas of what used to be
and what is now
i could see the outline
of foggy faces
behind familiar doors
the ghosts that built my life
i take a knee
for now
in old buildings graced
with years
of joy
much strife
the mystery of life
everything now so quiet
i could cut the air
with a butter knife
except for the occasional siren
covid
i presume
maskless in the night
but in my pocket
if in the moment
it is right
my daddy would adjust his glasses
shake his head
look down at the ground
love the people in this town
i shake my head
to agree
the canopy of trees
now drapes over streets
named for
heroes
the lores of war
would bow to now
a sad complacency
footprints to glory
rewind to tears
immense heartbreak
the history of the years
i peeked into jc penny's
empty now
the water fountains
gone
no white
no colored
just a human
way to be
the image always bothered me
as a little girl
i asked my mother why
her answers never pacified
but true and taught me well
amazing what i grew to be
justly
trustful
honestly
beyond words
the light
still beckons me
by the heart
as they twinkle all around
this december eve
i see my parents
walking into loys
oscar says
hello mal
what do you need
they smile and laugh
then fade to gray
the times were simple
connection was hello
how are you today
no thank you
and please
but not today
we complicate
which way to grow
divided in our misery
a lack of grace
a haunted morose
a tinge of gray
the world
without missing a note
continues its perfect graceful turn
as some lives begin
and other lives
come to a close
a siren screams
blurs quickly by
again
i watch it pass me by
is it someone i know
from yesterday
or someone i’ve never met
so many ghosts still remain
in the midst of who i am
those i loved
meander by
on the streets
i once called home
it always is
a long goodbye
when it’s time for me to finally go
but none the less
on this winter’s eve
i leave a part of me
in the alley by the door
where vines are growing
everywhere
— patty
Home, the spot of earth supremely blest.
A dearer, sweeter spot than all the rest.
— Robert Montgomery
