poem

 LatchkeyI was a latchkey kid.I was self reliant.I wasn ’t afraid of the emptiness of home.We ’d barge through the foyer shouting, bickering, Flip on the TV, fill the clock ticking silence with sound.Noise as a way of forgetting you're alone.I could do what I wantedI liked being alone I could run and shout,Boss my little sisters Pound the basketball against the cement,Chuck a tennis ball against a cinder block wall That had a strike zone chalked in the middle,At least until mom got homeAnd had to take her nap.I preferred being alone.I didn ’t wear the key around my neckDangling from a red yarn necklace Like some scarlet letter of abandonment.I stuck it bare under the front porch mat.We were poor and unaccomplished and white.Mom did her best.She worked and went to schoolAnd on Sundays made giant plattersOf food meant to last all week.Ragu spaghetti, pots of powder mix chili, tuna casserolesTin bowls of raspberry jello, halibut stenciled with soft white bonesFrozen peas, tater tots, chalky lima beans.A Lutheran pastor brought groceries once a month,The one chance we had to eat the good stuff Like Pringles and Cheetos,Like Frosted Flakes and Count Chocula Instead of the usual cheap off-brand CheeriosYou had to scoop from a plastic bag.I had a special token for school lunchesAll through middle school.Green for reduced, red for free.I kept mine in my pocket until the last minuteSo no one would see.But the lunch lady always made you sho...

Source: Buckeye Surgeon - January 2, 2022 Category: Surgery Authors: Jeffrey Parks MD FACS Source Type: blogs