Never had I more than a chance
To look at the future but
with a glance

I saw the world from
the rear window of a car
While being driven to
destinations that were near , some far

So many miles
before I was five
Before I even realized
I was alive

And home was where
my grandparents lay
Maybe we could go visit
on Christmas day

I learned to walk long
and I fought hard
Always drawing the shorter straw or the
the blackest card

I learned to spell struggle
with colored crayons
With black and blue
and red when hit on

I learned to run away
at the age of three
There were no fences
that could stop and hold me

Snakes and snails and
puppy dog tails
Emotional distrust
and a *******

No little boy
should ever be a knapsack full of momentos of forgotten history