The Child
J. Patrick Lewis
2013
4th Grade
Sylvia pushed into the wind,
Septembering the trees,
and hurdled over a railroad track
to a two-room shack
that never read “Browns Only.”
It did not have to.
Under the billion-acre sky,
she wondered, Did white girls
at 17th Street Elementary really
wear rainbow necklaces?
Aunt Sally took her there once.
Eyes sharp as icepicks pierced
the windowpanes as if seeing
a Mexican for the first time.
Every door was locked with a
secret combination of frowns.
How can anyone ever get in?
Sylvia asked. Someone must know
who has the right key…
She looked up at her mother.
Maybe me?