Project Description
Cornucopia
Let Us Never Forget…
What could we have done but give your son
our crooked handwritten, misspelled condolences?
We wrote letters and poems on construction paper, neatly folding them
like your resting hands in the casket.
We slipped our notes between fruit and food.
The wicker basket overflowed
with fifth grade offerings.
The burnt orange ribbon that cascaded down
made it seem like a present, a Thanksgiving blessing.
But when we delivered our gift,
handing it to your father, your son,
both of their eyes looked
thankless.
What could they be thankful for?
The skinhead who finally stopped
once the bat he was beating you with split in half?
God for sparing their lives?
The rain for washing your blood from the sidewalk?
I was only ten then.
I knew of Emmett, Medgar and Martin.
Thought your name would be the last name
added to that list.
But what could my fifth grade self know
about such bloodshed? How could I have known there would be
Amadou, Oscar, Sean, Trayvon, Mike?
A teacher now,
and still there is bloodshed.
What else can I do
but gather my students,
have them write poems,
give their offerings?
Renée Watson is an author, performer, and educator. Her work has received several honors including a NAACP Image Award nomination in children’s literature. Her novel, What Momma Left Me, (Bloomsbury 2010), debuted as the New Voice for 2010 in middle grade fiction. Her one woman show, Roses are Red Women are Blue, debuted at the Lincoln Center at a showcase for emerging artists.
One of Renée’s passions is using the arts to help youth cope with trauma and discuss social issues. Her picture book, A Place Where Hurricanes Happen (Random House, 2010), is based on poetry workshops she facilitated with children in New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and was featured on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams.
This piece was republished by EmpathyEducates with the kind permission of the Author. We thank Renée Watson for her vision, her poetry and for a novel and beautiful wisdom.
