artwork: ralph murre
Sundays
on the South Side
by
Robert M. Zoschke
one
day driving over to Auntie’s
a
huge red sign appeared
on
a rubble strewn street corner
along
Cicero Avenue
and
watching that joint
rise
up from the ground
was
a thrill
first
Chi Town
with
a mini mart
and
huge signs
warning
not to shoplift
I
was a young kid then
staring
at those signs
I
was still a
good
kid
best
part about going to Auntie’s
was
Uncle waiting
on
his racing pigeons to
land
and hop into the coop
two
years of pleading with Auntie
please
let me sit outside with Uncle
finally
she talked to him
and
he said okay
Uncle
never said anything
he
just sweated it out
waiting
on his birds
corner
of 59th and Hamlin
before
she died I asked Auntie
why
Uncle was always so serious
sweating
out those birds
coming
home
Auntie
said Robert those men
bet
a lotta money on them birds
and
Robert I mean
a
lotta money
~
previously published in THE LOWDOWN (Street
Corner Press)
