Sunday, July 10, 2011

I Am From

I am from sheet music,
from Ticonderoga and paintbrushes.
I am from the scales of six music lessons,
[cacophony, hovering,
we did not like duets].

I am from the lilac,
the spruce,
whose long gone limbs I remember
as if they were my own.

I’m from Midnight Mass and crooked fingers,
from Milada and André.
I’m from the interruptions and choir rehearsals at 10 pm.
I’m from because I’m the mom and on dit le chapelet
and fish and chips and vinegar.
I’m from reading Tolkien aloud by dome light.

I’m from Assiniboine and Ste. Boniface,
Oyster stew and kolache.
From my grandpa’s commanding officer
to the bullet that killed him,
the empty chamber in Grandpa’s gun.

Beneath a lid of corrugation and duct tape
confusing the baptismal gown and shoes
and candle, a Hallmark’s worth of notes
ignore the years till time lyricises even the thank yous.

3 comments:

  1. Thank you for sharing where you're from. The lines that really grab me are:

    From my grandpa's commanding officer
    to the bullet that killed him,
    the empty chamber in Grandpa's gun

    I also like that you used specific names and language associated with the culture you're from.

    Again, thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I agree with Jodie. Thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I like the image of Tolkien by domelight--was it The Hobbit?

    What is "on dit le chapelet"?

    ReplyDelete