poem “Big Shoulders: This Was Her Home”, a poem connecting a person who went to Carl Sandburg high school and seing the Chicago skyline from a distant suburb, and connecting them to making Chicago their only destination and where they are truly meant to be,By Chicago Poet Janet Kuypers

[the Writing of Kuypers] [JanetKuypers.com] [Bio] [Poems] [Prose]

Enjoy this YouTube video of Janet Kuypers starting her “Poetry Open Mic at The Gallery Cabaret with feature Janet Kuypers” and reading her poem “Big Shoulders: This Was Her Home” from the CyberWit 2024 poetry book “The Universe is in Your Hands” in Chicago on 8/14/24 (filmed from a Panasonic Lumix 2500 camera; posted on Facebook, Twitter, Link ed in, Pinterest, Instagram, and Tumblr).
Also enjoy this as a YouTube video that was filmed from a Panasonic Lumix FZ300 camera; posted on Facebook, Twitter/X, Link ed in, Pinterest, Instagram, and Tumblr.
Also enjoy this as a Facebook live video stream that was filmed & streamed live from a Samsung S9 camera; posted on Facebook, Twitter, Link ed in, Instagram, and Tumblr. #janetkuypersbookreading #janetkuyperspoem #janetkuypers #janetkuypersthecafegallery #janetkuyperstheuniverseisinyourhands

Big Shoulders:
This Was Her Home
Janet Kuypers
2/1/24
This poet went to Carl Sandburg high,
but her friend Brian lived further south,
and one summer day she sat in his car
as he excitedly told her he wanted
to show her something... She didn’t
know where they were going; her
tension mounted as his anticipation
grew, driving her farther south and east
than either one of their high schools.
Remember, this was back in the day
when Tinley Park was not congested
and there were still abandoned blocks
before the town was under construction
and ugly buildings littered the landscape...
Brian finally pulled over, told her to
get out of the car, and they walked
though gravel until trees cleared at one
small spot along the horizon. He stopped.
“Stop, look over there,” he said as he
pointed his fingers to the tiny space
between the trees. This poet from
Carl Sandburg high saw the skyline
of downtown Chicago, with high-rises
glistening like diamonds in the rough.
This Chicago skyline was just south
of where Carl Sandburg once lived.
This poet smiled, stared a while, and
made the decision right then and there
that this was her destination. This
was where she was meant to be. She was
not there yet, but this stormy, brawling,
city of big shoulders, this was her home.

Copyright © Janet Kuypers.

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