Where I Grew Up

Where I grew up, Dairy Queen was our only fast food, and Piggly Wiggly our only grocer

I grew up in wide-open spaces in a community void of fences

Where I could see my grandmother hanging clothes on the line from the kitchen window

Where frequent footfalls carved a bare path through a field connecting me from my home to my dear grandparents.

Where I grew up, I climbed trees, and rode on the tailgates of pickup trucks I picked wild blackberries that grew on the side of dirt roads

And chewed sour dots and savored the sweet nectar of honeysuckles

I played outside all day and in the evening sat on the floor in front of my grandfather's chair to hear tales of how he ran into Big Foot while hunting in the woods

And at night, where I grew up, I would lie in bed and let the night song billowing in through the open window, dance through the curtains, and sing me to sleep