Thinking about January 20th's inaugural of Barack Obama.

When I was seven,
we traveled to Florida
for a vacation,
and as much as the
legendary warmth in winter
I remember my parents
instructing me
after we crossed the
Mason-Dixon line,
to be very careful
of what fountain I drank
from or what bathroom I used.
We were white but not
exempt from punishment.
In the event of disobedience,
They’d string us up
beside any black
person nearby--
that’s what my father
said--a matter-of-fact--
I believed him,
could feel and the
penning separate,
saw black people
lowering their eyes
and stepping aside.
It made me
ashamed,
afraid
for all of us.

Tomorrow will be
A Great Day for
me--faded beige-to-pink--
the sign of a
sea change.

Tomorrow a black man
and his beautiful black
family come to live
in America’s White House.