What I Want to Remember

From a fastwrite 1/24/11 What do I remember about that day, that moment?
Following our first look at 1419 race. street

What to remember about that day, that moment?

The children were absent,
and there was no concern
for their education or recreation
The only fret being
where the dog would pee.

The sliver of the skyline viewed
through a boarded window on the third floor.
The dark recesses illuminated by a
miner’s flashlight,
crown molding,
scalloped edges around the stairs

The mind, how it traveled to places
free from criticism, stereotyping,
these one’s own vices

Strolling towards Washington Park
as it if were the 1860s
when landmarks punctuated the city’s narrative

Visions of lamp lights
gleaming in the puddles of uneven streets
Neighbors challenging convictions
Cultivating a garden on the rooftop,
a second smaller plot outside the kitchen door
Landing a kiss on a husband’s soft round lips
Planting oneself in the midst of a community
That needs roots.