Joan E. Bauer: Tribal

Grandpa Joe was nearly born in steerage

from Palermo, but landed in Texas.

He loved watching Jimmy Durante on TV.

The Great Schnozzola, a man of his tribe.

My father-in-law Gene returned from the Pacific

damaged, painstakingly endured.

About any big headline, he’d say:

Is this good for the Jews?

When young friends began with nose rings,

tattoos & crystals, I confess: I didn’t get it.

These days ‘tribal’ is a synonym for ‘awesome.’

Who knew?  So there’s still time to sign on

as a utopian/feminist anarcho-syndicalist, locally

sourced & intentional?

My tribe?  I say: Everyone. But I’m often mistaken

for Filipino. Or Greek. Or Arabic. Or Chinese.

Copyright 2018 Joan E. Bauer

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Joan E. Bauer