Inside, Outside, Upside Down
When I studied at the metropolitan university
I told my classmates
That I had worked in tobacco
They looked at me like I had committed a crime
Folks, it was all I ever knew
I was born into it
And although tobacco produces toxins
For those who raise it
It also produces character
A livelihood
Grit
When I went back home to rural Kentucky
I told my old neighbors
That I was Catholic
They looked at me like I’d made friends
With the Whore of Babylon
Folks, it’s where I found Truth
I chose it
And although all the people in the pews
Are sinners
For those who really embrace It
It also produces character
Livelihood
Saints
7 thoughts on "Inside, Outside, Upside Down"
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I appreciate the honesty
of your seeking.
What Jim said.
And as an amateur
I would also posit that both make good medicine 😀
I like your unapologetic address to “Folks.”
Great insights here into how we box people in and how prejudice can grow.
Great juxtaposition, and the title is perfect
I like the movement of the poems two parts and the way each moves down to “character.” And also the truth of the sinners in the pews.
I like the two different points of view and how they come together.
I also tobacco family; also religious changes.