The Song of My People
I sing a song of white privilege
A song of sunscreen and tomato sandwiches
A song of diet Cokes and Virginia Slims
I sing a song of chocolate chip cookies baked at midnight
Of Hershey’s nuggets
And meat with dinner every night
Of running down gravel roads, falling, and picking tiny rocks out of bloody palms
A song of homeschooling with a stay at home mom
Of please, and thank you, and Dear Lord
Of sit up straight
Of VHS tapes and shareware DOS games
Of Vivaldi and King James
Of Laurel and Hardy, and Scarface
Of Taily Bone on cassette, and Grimm’s Fairy Tales in hardback
Books and books and books and books
Wading the cold creek barefoot, the rocks don’t hurt after your feet go numb
Catching fireflies in the yard at dusk
More books, late into the night
Whoa, your dad’s house is huge! Are you rich?
Of exploring the woods
Dog bounding ahead, cats padding behind
My own secret church in a fallen tree
When I marvelled at life and wondered what I was,
A song with a touch of existential crisis
And even then
A nagging sense of guilt
Sarah D. Silvey 