I was reintroduced to George Ella Lyon last night. I knew I'd met her before. There is just something about the telling and retelling of an old personal history. The beauty in the ways that it changes shape over time. Which places or experiences get the focus, which meaty parts get left out or forgotten. Thank goodness for technology as a way of record keeping. I would have hated to lose these words, written back in early high school. They capture a world and time that I can feel, hear and taste.
I am from...
Greens, cornbread, hot chips and Now or Laters,
I am from...
Decision-makers, promise makers, and heart-breakers,
I am from...
Candyland, Nintendo and Super Mario Brothers,
I am from...
Fudge brownies, Strawberry Cisco, and the death of my mother,
I am from a religion that teaches you that God is good, and to do unto others as you would want them to do unto you.
From The Spot in high school to the hop scotch games in elementary,
I am from...
Jerry Springer, Ricki Lake and Jenny Jones,
I am from...
Elementary dances that played "This is How We Do It" and apartment complexes that played "Breaking My Heart",
All the way to strawberry cheesecake, cookies & cream ice cream and pizza, From "if you don't have something nice to say don't say anything at all", "everything happens for a reason", and "clean your room",
From "clean your room",
To my room, where there are posters covering every inch of every wall and me sitting in my chair, on the floor or on my bed, writing.
This is where I'm from.
Greens, cornbread, hot chips and Now or Laters,
I am from...
Decision-makers, promise makers, and heart-breakers,
I am from...
Candyland, Nintendo and Super Mario Brothers,
I am from...
Fudge brownies, Strawberry Cisco, and the death of my mother,
I am from a religion that teaches you that God is good, and to do unto others as you would want them to do unto you.
From The Spot in high school to the hop scotch games in elementary,
I am from...
Jerry Springer, Ricki Lake and Jenny Jones,
I am from...
Elementary dances that played "This is How We Do It" and apartment complexes that played "Breaking My Heart",
All the way to strawberry cheesecake, cookies & cream ice cream and pizza, From "if you don't have something nice to say don't say anything at all", "everything happens for a reason", and "clean your room",
From "clean your room",
To my room, where there are posters covering every inch of every wall and me sitting in my chair, on the floor or on my bed, writing.
This is where I'm from.
Last night, I went even further back. To the home before the one with the room. The small light gray - brick red trimmed home at the end of Duboce Avenue. The one with the garden in the backyard and the enclosed front porch. With the few front steps where I sat between my mother's medium thighs to pose for the picture tucked away in the photo album. The straight view through to the kitchen from the little living room. I remember the way that living room swayed in 1989. And the beauty burning hair and grease perfume originating from the pressing comb over the stove's open flame. "Hold your ear now, so you don't get burned", great-grandmother would say, while big cousin stood smiling, watching my shrunken curls become long hair. This is where George Ella Lyon took me back to last night. And I am grateful.
