So we moved to Herzl Street
where Aunt Kay and Bernie lived upstairs.
And Peaches from Greenville lived below us.
And on Saturday nights more people
from Greenville came by
sitting and running their mouths
while the pots on the stove bubbled
with collards and sizzled with chicken
and corn bread baked up brown
inside Kay’s big black oven.
And the people from Greenville
brought people from Spartanburg
and Charleston
and all of them talked
like our grandparents talked
and ate what we ate
so they were red dirt and pine trees
they were fireflies in jelly jars
and lemon-chiffon ice cream cones.
They were laughter on hot city nights
hot milk on cold city mornings,
good food and good times
fancy dancing and soul music.
They were family.