Fall 2007

Resilience

Kicked out of our father’s car elvis, the savior
thanks to his smart mouth, my brother
walked up Hollywood Boulevard

where he gathered strength,
swiping at hot tears
then curling his lip like Elvis.

There is always a song if you listen.

He swayed his skinny hips, even turned
his collar up. As for the rush of trucks
spitting dust, he closed his eyes.

Voila, applause.

Ona Gritz studied poetry in the Graduate Creative Writing program at New York University. Her second book for children, Tangerines and Tea: My Grandparents and Me (Harry N. Abrams), was named Best Alphabet Book of 2005 by Nick Jr. Family Magazine. Her poetry has been published in Paterson Literary Review, The Pedestal Magazine, Moment, The American Voice, Poetry East, and many other print and online journals including Literary Mama where she is also a columnist. She is the winner of the 2007 Inglis House Poetry Contest. Her chapbook of poems, Left Standing, was released in 2005 by Finishing Line Press.

This poem is based on a story my older half brother told me about how he would walk home along Hollywood boulevard by himself when he was only nine or ten. I put that together with his love of music and my own sense of what solace music can be.