Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart Poet Haibun

Memory In Black and White

Palm trees and ocean breeze heavenly received by this pasty white 
northern teen. On the drive to grandma's snowbird roost she points 
out a black family; "they must be renters, blacks are only here during
the week to work".


            road to Disneyworld
lined with tin and waste wood shacks

        short of dreams come true




7.9.2020

A Memory Poetry Contest
Sponsored by Line Gauthier

♡Like0

Share Poem

---

Post Comments

Poetrysoup is an environment of encouragement and growth so only provide specific positive comments that indicate what you appreciate about the poem. Negative comments will result your account being banned.

Please Login to post a comment

Aditi Mishra July 26, 2020 at 9:50 AM This leaves such a powerful impact on my mind Maureen. The harsh reality of this world that we witness through grey filters everyday. A touching write!

Frances Byrne July 23, 2020 at 5:15 PM Hi Maureen, Very thought provoking write. What we see and experience as children can mark us deeply. Brilliant contrasting. Frances Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 25, 2020 at 5:44 AM Thank you Frances. I’m intrigued myself by what memories stick, those seemingly obscure moments that shape who we become. A lovely day to you! xomo

Eric Ashford July 18, 2020 at 9:38 AM Yes this feels real, and it would be a strong memory for sure. I love how you switch to the road scenes of a poorer side of the sunshine state. Eric Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 18, 2020 at 12:05 PM btw, it’s Maureen, in case you missed the slip of the moniker ;), Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 18, 2020 at 12:00 PM Thank you a Eric. I remember wondering where they lived, in my teenage naïveté; the sight of that question answered haunts me to this day. xomo

Jean Murray July 14, 2020 at 2:21 PM It's funny what sticks out in our memories. Especially as teenagers, when we are trying to make sense of our world. Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 14, 2020 at 2:24 PM You nailed it. I tried to remember the Disney park and barely anything comes to mind, just the shanties we passed on the way there, clear as day. Thank you Jean, xo Maureen

Judy Ball July 14, 2020 at 10:32 AM I have memories like that too. Only I was one of the poor kids that never saw Disney Land or any of the tourist attractions in Florida. I also remember the separations of the races too. Quite unfair. Not like that here in Canada though. Nice write, great imagery. God Bless, JB Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 14, 2020 at 11:35 AM I was a poor kid too, then my mother married money, but having seen what I saw, those shanty villages, it put poverty in perspective for me. I’m considered poor now, but I call it “Canada poor”; we count our blessings. Hopefully too with the recent light shone on the economic disparity here we will get some real change. Hugs! Mo

Michelle Faulkner July 13, 2020 at 8:20 PM So rich in poignancy, sadly, many people don't get their happily ever after... Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 14, 2020 at 11:37 AM Thank you Michelle, sadly true. xomo

Timothy Mcguire July 13, 2020 at 3:29 PM Great ! A FAV for me. I grew up in the south and I had a similar experience. Your words speak so true to this. Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 14, 2020 at 11:38 AM Thank you Timothy! It really was a stark impressionable experience. xomo

Gary Radice July 13, 2020 at 7:33 AM A great write Mo. Here's to a better Tomorrowland. Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 14, 2020 at 11:40 AM Thank you Gary. We can only hope. Actually no, we can only do everything in our own power. xomo

Caren Krutsinger July 13, 2020 at 3:07 AM This one was brilliant, Mo. Brilliant. Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 14, 2020 at 11:41 AM Thank you Caren <3 mo hugs than you can know what to do with. x!

Rhonda Johnson-Saunders July 12, 2020 at 9:36 PM Well written, Maureen! Your last line sums it up perfectly...growing up in North Miami, my neighborhood was a melting pot of colors and cultures. I'm grateful I didn't experience what you describe. GL in the contest. Blessings, Rhonda xx Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 12, 2020 at 10:57 PM That sounds more like how I grew up too. I just now remembered her trailer was in Redington Shores. The experience was so alien to me, I have never forgotten it. Thank you Rhonda! Hugs n' love, xomo

Mark Koplin July 12, 2020 at 7:28 AM Another good one Mo! Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 12, 2020 at 7:30 AM Thank you Mark! Good morning! <3

DM Babbit July 11, 2020 at 10:18 AM Wow, so well penned. I too, have been on those trips down to Florida visiting my Dad and my Aunts, but sadly, the sights were familiar. Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 11, 2020 at 12:33 PM Thank you DM. I imagine not much has changed, sadly. xomo

Andrea Dietrich July 10, 2020 at 7:04 PM This is really great poetry. Showing us , as Kim says, a sad truth, which I hope will one day be obliterated in this world. Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 11, 2020 at 9:59 AM Thank you Andrea. I can't imagine what could bring that about other than rallying against an overwhelming threat, that we could all agree on ;), xomo

Kim Rodrigues July 10, 2020 at 2:36 PM Wow! Certainly surreal. I know there is sad truth in this. That’s why we bring these to light in poetry. Oh if only all these kids were rounded up and given at least a weekly treat on rides and amusements at Disney. It’s a small world after all! Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 11, 2020 at 9:58 AM Thank you Kim, lovely sentiment. This... Seared in my memory, the first time I witnessed racism; didn't really figure out my grandmother was racist till years later. Mo hugs!

Demetrios Trifiatis July 10, 2020 at 8:58 AM Witty and pretty dearest, Maureen! Hugs xxx Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 11, 2020 at 9:54 AM Thank you Demetrios, hugs n' love your way! xomo

David Kavanagh July 9, 2020 at 4:53 PM Touch of class super Mo, no pun intended Love the ku ending, I seen a crazy movie klerks 2 and one of the guys keeps obliviously quoting his grandmas racial sayings in front of the wrong people, this brought it to mind, cheers David Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 10, 2020 at 11:27 PM Oh this medium. I was expressing glee, typing in my excited voice, hard to hear over the Internet ;), Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 9, 2020 at 5:30 PM Clerks! Only seen the 1st, don't remember much, love his other film Dogma though, SO want to see that again now... I'll never forget my grandma's face when my boyfriend earnestly ask her what one of her racial slurs meant. Cheers! xomo

Lawrence Sharp July 9, 2020 at 2:08 PM A powerful and withering statement piece, Mo ! Excellent. Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 9, 2020 at 4:12 PM Thank you Lawrence; I am happy for the prompt for my being able to let this cat out of the bag. xomo

Rico Leffanta July 9, 2020 at 1:38 PM I recall those days with ease. Visiting my cousin in Burbank, I learned people of colour - including Japanese gardeners - were prohibited within city limits after 20:00. How could they see us in the dark? Aloha! Rico Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 11, 2020 at 3:42 PM I heartfully agree with you there <3 Rico Leffanta July 11, 2020 at 2:25 PM I lived in Wales when all the street signs reverted to Welsh much to English-speakers dismay. How can learning the aboriginal place name be harmful? Every nation has enough monuments to war but not enough to their origins! Aloha! Rico Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 9, 2020 at 4:10 PM ...mind you the same neighbourhood my grandmother complained about all the immigrants and the city changing the street names (to French) Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 9, 2020 at 3:59 PM I really was blessed to grow up in a diverse neighbourhood, one I moved back to 13 years ago. It's a reputable rough hood, but people here smile and say hello. Friends who have moved away miss it, particularly for the sake of their children's experience with cultural diversity.

Ilene Bauer July 9, 2020 at 1:04 PM oh, so poignant, maureen! well done... Maureen McGreavy Pigeon Tart July 9, 2020 at 1:13 PM Thank you Ilene. Funny how things stick to you, I don't remember much else about that vacation, this seared in my memory. Her racism really put a strain on our relationship at the end of her life, the older she got the more loose her tongue. Lessons on how not to be ;), xomo!