Y O R
E C
Thereʼs this empty lot below my place that someone thought should be a garden. People been showinʼ up out of nowhere to plant their food and stuff...watchinʼ it grow...makinʼ a “paradise” in this hell...pfft. The door slams. Olʼ man must be home. “Royce! Where you at!?” Dang! That man always knows when Iʼm home. “In here!” “Come out here!” I leave the window and its vision of “paradise.” “Whatʼs up pops?” “I told you to clean up this mess” I look to the sink and the mess in it then look back at my olʼ man, “you ainʼt never said that” “You talkinʼ back to me?” “Just tellinʼ you the truth.” WHAM! His giant hand comes crashing down on my face. WHAM! WHAM! twice more the pain comes. “You donʼt never talk back..you here” “whatever,” I mumble WHAM! one more, this time on the other side. “Now get out you good for nothinʼ!” Donʼt need to be told twice. I scramble up, trying to stay proud and walk out of the house.
Itʼs night, but it being summer thereʼs still light outside. Where am I gonna go? Canʼt head south or west, wonʼt be a tomorrow for me if I go that way. Canʼt head north or east, end up in jail for not wearing the right skin if I head that direction. Thatʼs when it hits me...Iʼll go to “paradise.” I hang out in the neighborhood until it gets darker, too dark for people to keep working on “paradise.” I head in and look for a spot to lie down, I grab a big tomato on the way in, ainʼt eaten nothing since this morning. I find a small garden, thereʼs mown grass next to it...good a place as any. I lie down, too sore to think, too tired to care and fall asleep.
Daylight comes, gotta get gone before someone sees me. Olʼ manʼs off today...heʼll just be sitting around the house, making a mess as usual. I spend the rest of the day wandering around. Darkness comes and I head back to paradise. I find an empty spot this time...not too far from where I grabbed that tomato the other day. I lie down and look up at the skyline and think to myself, “even though Iʼm in ʻparadiseʼ all I can see is hell.