Childhood
childhood (puzzle poem)
Dancing to the Jackson 5 at three in the morning
Burning marshmallows on a campfire
Bananas and chocolate with mom
Sitting under the awning in the rain, listening to baseball
running from cicadas
The smell of cigarettes on dad’s jacket
kissing Billy in the dark
That time dad called the White House and got through
Picking blackberries with aunt barb
Sneaking into a movie theater with the girl next door
Eating alone at lunch, too shy to make friends
My brother falling in a hole in the road
Fishing for crawdads, then being too afraid to touch them
Scaring my sister with daddy long legs
Waking up in the hospital after a seizure
Getting a check that bounced for Christmas
The lake in Wisconsin so clear you could see the bottom
Trying to attract an older boy by pretending to be British
Going to the drive-in when dad left after a fight
Taking sleds to the meat market during the storm of '77
Jumping on the milk box
Another brother in braces with an icicle as tall as he was
pieces of my childhood
each of them a story
I cannot put them together for you
You just had to be there
Copyright © Jennifer Maxwell | Year Posted 2020
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