Wednesday, February 1, 2023

our little adventure

She didn't tell him for some reason 

That summer day sometime in the 1950s

When my mother took us three children 

Driving to a place we had never been 


Off we went to the Mystic Seaport to explore 

Where her Aunt Cora was a benefactor 

Heading there while my father was at work unaware

Thinking we'd return before he found us out


A photo she took just before we started back 

Posing us clinging to some nautical rope decor

Documented that we finally made it there

Introduced to a family connection of hers


What fun we had that day on our little adventure 

Until we returned met by our visibly angry father

Already home and extremely upset 

For what reason we could not know why


The story does not end there at the door 

But like waking up abruptly from a dream

Escaping some situation with no way out

This is where I let him fade into nothingness 


Deliberately practicing selective memory

Choosing to focus on what I enjoyed most

Thinking about that day and him and her and us

How we found ways to be happy anyway