Roots and Wings

I'm proud of where I've been.

Standing in the blazing sun
Baking through a dry prairie day-
Watching hot wind whip the wheat fields into
A frenzy while I shield
My face
Because
There's no tree to do it for miles...

Dodging tumbleweeds,
Knowing the first sign of spring
Comes with the sting of them
Hitting my skin when friends and
I create a game
Outrunning them...

Going to college surrounded by
Cowboy hats and brown spit
Spattering the ground-
Learning to skirt the spatter
Like I learned to breathe.

Yesterday...

Walking the streets of Chicago-
Staring up and shielding my face from
The glare of the sun
Bouncing off the Sears Tower...

Knowing the first sign of spring
Comes from that fierce Chicago wind
Whipping my jacket into a frenzy-
Holding on so it won't fly into
Lake Michigan
While I sit on the shore
To write...

Striding down Michigan Avenue
Learning to skirt fanatics shoving papers in
My face-
Dodging the bums who shake their
Starbucks cups and sing off-key for
"just a dime ma'am, just a dime..."

I'm proud of where I'm going.