i was born
this poem was inspired by jenny slate’s chapter in little weirds entitled “i was born: the list”, rereading this book and loved this chapter so decided to write into this prompt and see what happened. now i am wondering what your “i was born” would look like if you wrote it.
i was born where the forest meets the ocean,
the ocean connecting to veins of rivers,
wetlands, marshes.
i was born on the walk
from the sand dunes
to the prairies and grasslands
and back to the car.
i was born in the public library,
in the scholastic checkmarks
of books i wanted to come home with me.
i was born in fresh fish caught by my father
and eggs delivered to my doorstep,
fried for breakfast by my mother.
i was born in two different colored streamers
twisted together,
taped to the kitchen walls
for every celebration.
i was born in eclairs from the bakery,
in the whipped cream filling.
i was born on a Schwinn bike with a banana seat,
a swatch watch keeping time.
i was born in the dollhouse my dad built me,
with different colored wallpaper
and real house shingles,
so big i could sit inside it.
i was born in the first music television channel,
the first reality show,
the first cd with still more records around,
the first computer.
i was born in encyclopedias,
our first books of reference.
i was born in the bay,
alongside picnics:
homemade, or
if deli-bought, always roast beef,
hansen sodas as a special treat,
floating near the swim platform.
i was born closing my eyes
and seeing a kaleidoscope, sometimes,
usually on a swing
or at bedtime.
i was born late,
almost a month,
induced to arrive.
i was born sometime in the afternoon,
on a wednesday,
where my brother,
my cousins,
my cousins’ kids were born,
twenty minutes from where i live today.
i was born somewhere between
night fever,
if i can’t have you,
the closer i get to you.
i was born in a remix of
the bee gees and roberta flack,
fleetwood mac, chaka khan,
marvin gaye,
warren zevon,
bill withers,
and dolly.
i was born in ear infections,
in the tubes bringing relief
for more than twenty years,
until water trapped itself
in my ear in miami,
escaping winter snow.
i was born in make-believe:
dress-up,
plays we performed,
pretending to be someone else.
i was born studying skits in shows,
learning humor,
with a friend’s camcorder recording during sleepovers.
i was born in doorbell ditching, crank calling, and toilet paper wars
that are now extinct.
i was born in the final moment between stillness and movement
when you leave the blocks
into the pool or around the track.
i was born in the paint on the canvas,
when no one worried about being good
or talented-only about creating.
i was born in candle wax of candlesticks,
lit just because.
i was born believing, hopeful
writing my autobiography
on actual paper.
i was born in dreaming when awake.
i was born in knowing things
without knowing why.
in liking to talk to people
i had just met
or had always known.
i was born in the surprises we still get,
in handmade birthday crowns,
in wishes living on the residue
in candle wax on the cakes.
i was born in the salt on wheat thins
after a swim.
in coffee beans grinding. in coffee,
in the morning, afternoon, or evening
poured for you by me
or by you for me.
i was born seeking.
not knowing.
knowing.
wanting to learn.
i was born thinking things
i thought were far away,
or happiness i believed
only others could bring.
i was born later, finding
they were here,
inside me
all along.
some of my fav quotes from jenny’s “i was born: the list”:
“I was born on the boundary line between cold and hot, at the intersection of the two elements that make a clap of thunder.”
“I was born as a backyard swimming pool and my twin sister is an orange Popsicle and my mother is a bowl of pickles and my father is a hamburger.”
“I was born in the Atlantic Ocean, and I pray to goddesses that look like whales and waves and I make tons of wishes.”
”I was born with a fatal allergy to both subtext and traditional organization techniques and I will tell you I have really had a few near-death experiences. I was born two years ago when my friends described me as “the least able-to-be-controlled person that I know, ” and I started living right away.