The only town I knew when I was young
Was the one I still love, now that I am old
There were no streets paved with gold
Or a history with stories left untold
We were a neighborhood
Part of a bigger city
A collection of characters true
Docile or stern, grim or witty
Curfews and standards
Things we just wouldn’t do
Credit at the bakery
Joe, who repaired the shoes
Paint store and flower shop
They were all places you knew
Even then I wondered what
I would do to put a claim on fame
Cecil the butcher would help you
Decide on the very best cuts
Hammer and Cortenof, the hardware
Carried the very best stuff
Harry Shook at City Service Station
Was part of the big family
You didn’t want to get out of line
He would take you over his knee
Kick the can and marbles
Basketball until all hours of the night
Kids of different backgrounds and color
Seldom was there ever a fight
Drugstores on every corner
Sometimes it was hard to choose
You could not pick a bad one
Really nothing there to lose
Lawn jobs, raking and mowing
Shoveling snow all winter long
Character developed unwittingly
Harmony and love, like a song
Gone now are the dear old neighbors
Mr. Warwick won’t be seen again
Dr. Slemons, old man Clark and Mr. Johnston
Nobody left it seems
It was a great, fine brotherhood
Room for every quirk and scheme
No one blowing taps for the other guy
Too much on your own plate it seemed
When you left you really didn’t leave
You moved, but you still held the dream
Home means different things for sure
Logan Street will always be home to me
Stanski
January 6, 2020 ^
Steve Haarman 