The Basketball
As
you walk onto your favorite court
Echoes
surround you of praise and support.
Home
court advantage, championship game
All
that’s at stake is the glory and fame.
The
black and white striped men, powers at be
Taking
one last stretch, then war they will see.
St.
Madeline’s School, the opposing team
Ready
their stink eyes, which ruffle your seams
“Final
time out taken,” The refs inform
“Blue
ball!” your team’s possession, go take form.
The
ball is inbound, then it’s passed to you
You
move swiftly in order to pursue
Only
five seconds left in this quarter
You
have a clear path, you can restore order.
Dribble,
dribble, cross-over, bounce, bounce, shoot
Whistles
blaring all around, “foul, 22!”
The
greys and navys take their sports in line
While
the coaches pace, pretend to feel fine
Nike’s
strapped on tight, jersey tucked in, breathe
It’s
just a painted line, but death it bequeaths.
A
sign of the cross, Hail Mary’s for luck
Tuck
in that elbow, pretend it’s stuck
Finally,
the powers hand you the ball
You’re
nervous but ready to take it all
A
couple dribbles, exhale, position
The
bend of the knees send them in motion
Everyone
stares as it arches in flight
Silence,
then “swoosh,” nothing but net in sight
The
buzzer sounds, your teammates jump and scream
CYO
champs, and it is not a dream.
The Singing by C. K. Williams
I was walking home down a hill near our house
on a balmy afternoon
under the blossoms
Of the pear trees that go flamboyantly mad here
every spring with
their burgeoning forth
When a young man turned in from a corner singing
no it was more of
a cadenced shouting
Most of which I couldn't catch I thought because
the young man was
black speaking black
It didn't matter I could tell he was making his
song up which pleased
me he was nice-looking
Husky dressed in some style of big pants obviously
full of himself
hence his lyrical flowing over
We went along in the same direction then he noticed
me there almost
beside him and "Big"
He shouted-sang "Big" and I thought how droll
to have my height
incorporated in his song
So I smiled but the face of the young man showed nothing
he looked
in fact pointedly away
And his song changed "I'm not a nice person"
he chanted "I'm not
I'm not a nice person"
No menace was meant I gathered no particular threat
but he did want
to be certain I knew
That if my smile implied I conceived of anything like concord
between us I should forget it
That's all nothing else happened his song became
indecipherable to
me again he arrived
Where he was going a house where a girl in braids
waited for him on
the porch that was all
No one saw no one heard all the unasked and
unanswered questions
were left where they were
It occurred to me to sing back "I'm not a nice
person either" but I
couldn't come up with a tune
Besides I wouldn't have meant it nor he have believed
it both of us
knew just where we were
In the duet we composed the equation we made
the conventions to
which we were condemned
Sometimes it feels even when no one is there that
someone something
is watching and listening
Someone to rectify redo remake this time again though
no one saw nor
heard no one was there
on a balmy afternoon
under the blossoms
Of the pear trees that go flamboyantly mad here
every spring with
their burgeoning forth
When a young man turned in from a corner singing
no it was more of
a cadenced shouting
Most of which I couldn't catch I thought because
the young man was
black speaking black
It didn't matter I could tell he was making his
song up which pleased
me he was nice-looking
Husky dressed in some style of big pants obviously
full of himself
hence his lyrical flowing over
We went along in the same direction then he noticed
me there almost
beside him and "Big"
He shouted-sang "Big" and I thought how droll
to have my height
incorporated in his song
So I smiled but the face of the young man showed nothing
he looked
in fact pointedly away
And his song changed "I'm not a nice person"
he chanted "I'm not
I'm not a nice person"
No menace was meant I gathered no particular threat
but he did want
to be certain I knew
That if my smile implied I conceived of anything like concord
between us I should forget it
That's all nothing else happened his song became
indecipherable to
me again he arrived
Where he was going a house where a girl in braids
waited for him on
the porch that was all
No one saw no one heard all the unasked and
unanswered questions
were left where they were
It occurred to me to sing back "I'm not a nice
person either" but I
couldn't come up with a tune
Besides I wouldn't have meant it nor he have believed
it both of us
knew just where we were
In the duet we composed the equation we made
the conventions to
which we were condemned
Sometimes it feels even when no one is there that
someone something
is watching and listening
Someone to rectify redo remake this time again though
no one saw nor
heard no one was there
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