Filthy and Inoculated

Under multicolored skies

and the city's daily serenade of sirens, curses and breaks,

children played,

with wanton sense of adventure that comes with longer days and warmer nights.

Street laps barking alarms to go home,

were ignored.

Butterflies, fire flies and green breezes were received with delight and wonder

as nature wafted hints of other worlds before our senses. 

We were starved for nature but not curiosity.

Hopscotching over cracks,

we wondered at those who grew up with green lawns and extra curricular activities

while we build hide outs in vacant lots from pieces of broken fridges, cars and three legged grocery carts.

But while they had lemonade and pools,

we had piraguas with coconut water and liberated fire hydrants;

where they had soccer and football fields, 

we had bottle cap soccer, handball, street rules football and basket ball in drug addled parks

There were no bike lanes.

Ingenuity and self preservation were the skills we learned.

There were no bucolic seating areas for us.

The city was our dangerous playground,

where the herd was culled daily

We didn't climb trees, but some did tied sneakers onto street lamps.

We explored abandoned buildings

in lieu of school dances with chaperones

we gave birth to instant street parties

with boom boxes and abuelita's chicken and rice.

We came home filthy and inoculated and oddly satisfied.

We made the best of our communities, despite the powers that be.