This weekend I attended a formation retreat where we were given the assignment to construct a “Where I’m From” poem using this template. I’m not much one for poetry, so this was a challenge. Nonetheless, I did my best. Enjoy.
I am from model spaceships and computer games; from Dr. Pepper and 30-minute Pizza Hut delivery. I am from a suburban cul-de-sac: safe, practical; lots of kids to play with.
I am from sagebrush and pine trees, surrounding every campfire and hiking trail.
I’m from country music, Scrabble tournaments, and mildly neurotic over-achievers; from Richard Raymond and the Wight family.
I’m from the passive-aggressives and the sarcastic smart-asses. From “life is hard and then you die!” and “live long and prosper!”
I’m from faithful pioneers who went into the unknown to settle the steppe, prairie, and desert. I’m from the American West (by way of England, Ireland, and Germany; Catholics, Protestants, and Mormons alike).
From pit BBQs and frog-eye salads.
From my father’s life and early career, tragically interrupted by cancer. The heroic and exhausting work of my mother, effectively a single parent.
In volumes of documents, memoirs, photographs, and electronic genealogical databases can be found the hope of my family to preserve and transmit a story and legacy.
Hazelnut Notes 