by Nicole Luttrell
The town where my family
became Americans
Our roots ran shallow
I'm the only one left
The town that embraces me
A beloved child
But the warm hug is tainted
A racist uncle
who never forgets my birthday
Downtown is scarred
A sidewalk broken up
with dandelions pushing through
The best and brightest move
leaving the mediocre and the
lost souls like me behind
Too scared to turn away
from the only thing
that's ever held me
Where I was married
Where my foremothers are buried
First jobs, first steps
Last long goodbyes
To walk it is to see memories
Dripping from traffic lights
Snowflakes and root beer barrels
Fires and friends lost
I'll cut the last ties
Let the strings drift away
Like so much trash
to plant deep roots
somewhere new
About the Author
Nicole is a speculative fiction author. That means she writes about dragons, ghosts and spaceships. Sometimes she writes about the ghosts of dragons on spaceships. She lives in Western PA with her dog, cat and husband. She makes the best pasta salad ever. Follow along with her writing adventures at PaperBeatsWorld.com
