A sense of place...

The Heinz Stacks on the North Side of Pittsburgh

       57
                        Susan Beth Furst
 
 
East Street
early morning deep freeze
a donut-shop
the only light
half a cigarette
between bare fingers
warm bear claws
in a paper bag
a thin line of red
and smoke
from the Heinz stack
above
the slow-moving river
the sound of
footsteps
on the bridge…
 
skyscrapers
in the rising sun
the bag lady’s cart
 
 
              Old Song: The Red Moon Anthology of English-Language Haiku 2017
                                                                                                               


I love my city, the place where I'm from, Pittsburgh: the city of steel, bridges, and the three rivers. Can you say Allegheny, Monongahela, Ohio? They were my first words.

And there is Heinz. You know, ketchup, the only ketchup. 57 varieties of anything and everything you could put on a sandwich, a chipped ham sandwich.


midnight
at the Heinz factory
tomato moon


There is Downtown. The Warner Theater, and the Stanley are long gone, along with Gimbels, Joseph Horne's, and Kaufmann's. But the clock is still there! 

still waiting
under the clock
Downtown moon


The Oyster House was established in 1870, Pittsburgh's oldest restaurant. As a child, I loved the fried oysters and buttermilk. I took three shakes of black pepper in mine! And those Miss America Photos on the walls...


Miss America photos
stare at the backs of boozy old men
sitting at the bar 


Pittsburgh is part of my story. It's part of me. And it shows up in what I write. It gives my writing context, a sense of place.

Do you have a place that you love, or hate, for that matter? Is there a place that is part of your story? Can you write with a sense of place? 
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Call for Submissions: Write a small poem, ten lines or less, about a place, maybe it is a place you love or a place you've visited. Identify the place in your poem. Someone may want to visit! Type it into the comment box on the Contact Page. I will publish the poems on my Poetry Page at the end of April! The winning poem, judged on creativity and sense of place,  will receive a copy of my book, The Amazing Glass House! 


Blessings,

Susan






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