reddened wire twisted coil
just above grease stained tin foil
baptized by fried chicken splatter
and last night's catfish batter
cornered rust on fading stove
a corner piece of quaint abode
dark shade of red metallic brown
glazed meatloaf,
croquettes,
cherried pineapple down,
What a friend in Jesus hummed
bubbled grits percussive drummed
upward outward aroma fall
olfactoric wake-up call
pancakes buttered in a stack
cheese eggs sizzle on cast-ironed
BLACK
is beautiful
charred toast good for ya teeth
finish dem collards and dem beets
cornbread, ChaCha bring da heat
taters, turkey, gravy; meal complete (then…)
turkey tetrazzini on toasted bread
turkey vegetable soup on Auntie’s sickbed
turkey sandwich for dinner; openfaced
starving kids in Africa,
swallow that turkey!
we don’t waste
round wooden table steps from the stove
formal dining right off the alcove
food for thought imbibed in either space
fearless dialogue iced with grace
when our talks were on a roll
(peach) preserved nationalistic goals
tearsshared
tempersflared
intimatelycared
imsoscared
love, money, sex a feast of therapeutic lot
timer dings
grandma brings
pound cake piping hot
thank God for that professor
from the royal city of fountains
crowned little me with dreams
while standing before mountains
anterior to sheepskin
at Emory and Princeton, too
I matriculated at her table on College Avenue
For Franceina,
GE2_5February2012
Copyright 2016 GE II & Associates