Memphis
. . . at the river i stand,
. . . at the river i stand,
guide my feet, hold my hand
i was raised
on the shore
of lake erie
e is for escape
there are more s'es
in mississippi
than my mother had
sons
this river never knew
the kingdom of dahomey
the first s
begins in slavery
and ends in y
on the bluffs
of memphis
why are you here
the river wonders
northern born
looking across buffalo
you look into canada toronto
is the name of the lights
burning at night
the bottom of memphis
drops into the nightmare
of a little girl's fear
in fifteen minutes
they could be here
i could be there
mississippi
not the river the state
schwerner
and chaney
and goodman
medgar
schwerner
and cheney
and goodman
and medgar
my mother had one son
he died gently near lake erie
some rivers flow back
toward the beginning
i never learned to swim
will i float or drown
in this mississippi
on the mississippi river
what is this southland
what has this to do with egypt
or dahomey
or with me
so many questions
northern born
_________________________________
Was it ten years ago now, or longer?
when Greg Joly and I read on the streets
to earn money for Katrina Relief, and this was
a poem I liked to read, and Greg had poems he
was ready to read and sometimes a brave soul
wandered across the street from the bar, plied
on some juice and he wanted to read, he didn't
care what. We let him. And Jim Koller came down
from Maine and read Ferlinghetti and Louise Landes Levi
stood in the December cold day and read with me and then
we went out with Susan and had hot Korean soup.
Lucille Clifton long ago came to Brattleboro and read
upstairs in the library and she was friendly vicious.
One of the finest readings I ever heard.
[ BA ]
Lucille Clifton
Blessing the Boats
New and Selected Poems
1988-2000
BOA Editions
2000
