My Parents in the 1950s

I've seen a picture of them, back when, out
In Las Vegas. They made a pretty nice pair.
Prim in early postwar prosperity, he's in a
Suit. She's in a dress, their sober clothes
Depression dark, but they're standing in
Front of their brand-new car with its
Strips of chrome and two-tone paint,
Spending the night in a mob-built oasis.
Things are beginning to change.
They never came back to Buffalo,
As they had promised to do. The tide,
The life, in California took them far
From where they were. Subsequent
Pictures show them with me, in a yard
Full of flowers, both of them only in
Shorts and luridly-printed shirts,
Their darkness and primness gone.



Poetry by Lawrence Beck The PoetBay support member heart!
Read 17 times
Written on 2011-06-16 at 14:19

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