Where I'm From
Where I'm from comes with a long rich history
Where my grandparents and their grandparents not only lived but survived
The Great Depression that knocked this country to it's knees
And my grandfather never could shake the memories
Of hunger, and loss, and struggle
Where I'm from my grandmother buried her father at 5
She remembered how cold the floors were in their rented room
And why they never needed closets
Because a hook on a wall was sufficient
Where I'm from I feel the history of the town
I love the lighted trees on Broad Street that now is for relaxation
That was once the center of commerce
Where cotton dust filled the air as it was shipped down stream
And the Cotton Block is now something where the city has a block party
Where I'm from keeps me connected to my past
And allows me to enjoy the beauty of my future.
In doing my poem I know I stuck mainly to the location aspect of where I am from, but at the same time, I connect deeply to those places. I mostly connect so deeply because of the history that my family takes up in this town. If you ever read Rick Bragg then that is the type of story telling I am used to, minus the drunks being in my family, they were cousins and such. I would have to say I am affirming the story of the South. I think history is important especially family history.
