Where I'm From

I've seen this going around other blogs and thought it might be fun to try out.  It is a writing exercise adapted from a poem by George Ella Lyons.  (You can find the template for the writing exercise here.)  It causes you to remember your roots and stirs up past family memories.  I enjoyed doing it.  I pretty much stuck to one side of the family, as they are very different.  I'd like to do it with the other side of too.  So here's Where I'm From.

I am from porch swings,

from Lawson's Chip Dip and Crest toothpaste.

I am from the yellow house with the bay window,

small, comfortable,

smelling of home-cooked food. 

I am from the pines,

the corn fields

that stretched to the heavens each summer.

I am from Sunday dinners and bad feet,

from Whitaker and Rose.

I'm from the hard workers

and those willing to help others,

from children are to be seen and not heard

and settle down.

I'm from sleeping under church pews

and weekly memory verses.

I'm from B-Town and Germany/Hungary,

from Hunky sausage and chicken paprikash.

From the church my grandfather pastored,

a father who broke his back, feet, and ankles

in a fall.

The thick green albums

plastered with photos,

bringing back the memory

of life, love, and special family time together.