Humble Beginnings (1955)

That’s me in my mother’s soon-to-be-overwhelmed arms. She had five more after this photo, and had to wash out each and every diaper. I was ten pounds, ten ounces at birth. Poor woman.

My handsome father got a job in the mines, so we lived in what was called a mining location. It was a rough place; I remember rats in the basement, getting worms, and a ride to the hospital with a tourniquet on my four year old arm.

if you want to know

your place in the universe,

look at old photos

the answer that you’re seeking

is right there in black and white

–Photo not by me, that’s for sure

i want to believe

in my guardian angel–

still, i look for trains.

believing isn’t a choice;

it’s the opposite of one.

–photo by me

the great mystery

of the cosmos was revealed

to me in a dream–

it’s gone now, but i recall

that i couldn’t stop laughing

–photo by me