We Set Our Spirits Free
When I was young - I’m talkin’ maybe five or six years old - we were living right next door to a family from Sudan,
And as I grew, the youngest of their children - named Aamira - (whose mom was white while...oddly enough...her dad was a colored man),
Was, in fact, the only child around that I could play with. The only other kids my age lived two and three blocks down.
But when I’d ask my mom or dad if I could play with her...I was always puzzled the way my folks would frown!
I don’t recall them saying, “No” for any obvious reasons, and it would take me several years before I’d figure out
What their true objection was. I’d actually turn thirteen before discovering what those little scowls were all about.
All the while Aamira’s folks had never shown discomfort clearly seeing just how close the two of us were growing...
But I could easily sense my parents’ growing disconcertion when little indications that I cared for her were showing.
Her father - then a teacher at the school we both attended - couldn’t ‘ve possibly missed the signs that we were - best o’ buds,
And though we’d never found the need to put it into writing...I ignored the beauty queens, while - she ignored the studs.
To me, she’d gone from being cute to nothing short of gorgeous, and when my folks would hint that I’d be wise to - “play the field”,
In my heart I knew that no one else would ever do, and Aamira’d told me, more than once, she knew our fates were sealed.
My folks, of course, were worried we’d be wrestling with regret...and even hers had slight concerns that - if we were to wed -
We’d be faced with obstacles quite hard to circumvent.
But -- we believed the path to “love”...regardless where it led...
Couldn’t possibly bring us to a void we couldn’t leap...and couldn’t possibly lead us to a hill we couldn’t climb.
And despite our knowing how our parents felt about - mixed marriage...shortly after graduating, we knew it was time
To tie the knot we’d felt for years was destined to be tied. Living our lives as man and wife was simply - meant to be!
And now that we have children, their grandparents clearly see that we did right to take that chance and --- set our spirits free!
|