Friday, April 07, 2017

National Poetry Month: Harold Jenkins, Hands

Yeah, I did that. I went there.

In the Netherlands right now, men are holding hands in public to show solidarity with a gay couple that was brutally attacked. Which is a nice response to an utterly horrible situation. But you have to take your wins where you get them.

This poem was inspired by something a friend told me when I took her grocery shopping, how her mom always told her to hold her hand in the supermarket and in the parking lot so she wouldn't wander off and get lost. Later I managed to get us lost while driving back from Wilkes-Barre to Scranton, which is quite an accomplishment, even for me. "It's a small planet," I said, as I tried desperately to get my bearings.

An excerpt of this poem was my first piece featured in the Poetry in Transit series.

Hands

You should hold hands, they say,
whenever you cross the street
or walk through a parking lot
or when you're in the supermarket
so you don't get lost

We should hold hands all the time
when we're sad
when we're scared
when we feel alone

It's a small planet
but a big universe
and it's easy to get lost
So it's good to have someone by your side
to hold hands with
as you try to find your way
together




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