Where I’m From #17

By Peg Conway

Inspired by George Ella Lyon

I am from cartoons on Saturday morning,

from Oreos dipped in milk and

Campbell’s chicken noodle soup heated in the copper-bottomed pot

then slurped from the spoon.

I am from the house with brown pillars that reach for the sky.

From the weeping willow tree whose branches, like feathers,

dangle to the ground,

from the ever-present absence that my mom’s death left behind.

I am from coloring books and 24 Crayola shades that never felt like enough,

from pining for the box of 64 that came with its own sharpener.

From Barbie dolls and Nancy Drew,

from Charlotte’s Web and Little House on the Prairie,

from Easy Bake Oven and the Game of Life.

I always went to college and chose a sensible career.

I am from grief unspoken, from so many things not said,

from “GOD DAMMIT!” yelled up the stairs, and Al’s fist

pounding the kitchen counter.

I am from the rosary, from Mary Lee’s blue beads and Julia’s black prayer book.

From hard wooden pews, black lace veils, and nausea-inducing incense.

From, “We’re not laughing at you, we’re laughing with you.”

And, “But I’m not laughing.”

Where to find Peg:

Website: https://www.pegconway.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pegmorseconway/

Where to find Alyson:

Website: https://www.alysonshelton.com

Substack: https://whereimfrom.substack.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/byalysonshelton/