dirt and love

one of my first memories of childhood
centers on playing in my grandmother's garden.
i remember biting into a bell pepper the size of my head
and hating it, gathering corn and sitting on the porch and shucking it,
and the smell of cooking greens

when i was growing up in the south,
everyone had a garden and you would barter with
your neighbors and family for things

sometimes, you would pass by a house full of women
sitting out front in the shade and you would
join them telling stories and shelling peas

those days are gone or that girl is gone
however, those memories live on
today, i tend my small balcony garden

life is different now
it's very urban
a small patch of sky
on a balcony
nearest neighbor three and a half arm lengths away

still the actions are the same
dig in the dirt
feel the love

P.S. I am currently, refurbishing my blog. Strange things may happen...thanks for your patience.