Lyrical Somerville

Our roots. Our hometown. Where we began our journey. The first half of the roller coaster ride. Where we cut our teeth. Somerville poet and native Mayanne Di Pasquale floods us with images from her youth in the "Ville," to give us a sense of her sweet-longing for times gone by. To have your work considered for the "Lyrical," send them to: Doug Holder  25 School St. Somerville, Mass. 02143  dougholder@post.harvard.edu

Kickball
I don’t remember
My last kickball
With the kids, the neighborhood crew
Michael Breslin, Jason Coke and Kim
Ringing bells, front yard yells
The after supper summons
Grab my sneakers, summer nights
The who’s captain fights starting right away
Moms calling after
"Home by streelights on!"
Our universal sign that sleep was soon…
We retired
And we never played again…
In the dusk
Summoned us to the coming of age
Teenage rage, and all that jazz
No more exploration of the world on bikes…
And you, my you,
My dream come true
My heart made into flesh…
I want it back
I want to run into Kinko’s
and Starbuck’s
And all these f…g  Gaps…
Hey, hi, come on don’t ask why
Just put down your chai and photocopies…
And play that last game of kickball
One, More, Time
It’ll be sublime.

Maryanne Di Pasquale