Written by:
Towana Pierre
About:
Jerome Smith
Purple and marigold feathers
Caress brilliantly luminous
Obsidian cheeks.
Beads glitter like precious
Gems on sparkling turquoise
Headdresses.
Majestic white crowns
Reach imperiously to
The heavens.
Wonder-filled eyes peer
From between jean-clad
Legs.
Vibrant colors dance
In hazel pools as
Tootie Montana’s
Melodic chants penetrate
Chocolate souls.
Jerome’s tiny feet follow along the
Time-worn banks of the
Sultry Mississippi.
Follow down Dryades to fight for integration.
Follow to the ivory guarded
Countertops where pale eyes
Shoot ice-coated daggers.
Follow to the palatial meccas of
Education where the haves prosper
And the have-nots perish.
Follow to teach the children
and make Freedom Summer last for decades.
Follow to keep culture alive
even when concrete swallows trees.
Follow to lead.