Mother as a young leftist
Sang: O I can boil eggs in a pot and
Fry them in butter for lunch
Three little comrades heating in my tummy
Father sang too:
O I’ll be the worker who fights all
The bosses!
Fo Fum…I hum…Fo Fum!
Father now nursing gout
And other assorted,
Plays over and over sweet Seeger,
Guthrie 78s, and always
Dear Robeson.
Mother now skinny and scared of
Turkey neck flings her three eggs
One by one against the wall,
They splatter,
They run,
And she sings:
Union Maid…
O Tra La Tra La.
Janice Eidus, award-winning novelist, short story writer, and essayist has twice won the 0.Henry Prize for her short stories, as well as a Redbook Prize and a Pushcart Prize. She is the author of the short story collections, THE CELIBACY CLUB and VITO LOVES GERALDINE, and the novels, THE WAR OF THE ROSENS, URBAN BLISS and FAITHFUL REBECCA. She’s co-editor of IT’S ONLY ROCK AND ROLL: AN ANTHOLOGY OF ROCK AND ROLL SHORT STORIES. Her writings about her lifelong love affair with rock and roll include the short stories, VITO LOVES GERALDINE; ELVIS, AXL, AND ME; NOT THE PLASTER CASTERS; and TEEN IDOL. She lives in New York City and San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. (www.janiceeidus.com)
[...] “Singing in Union,” by Janice Eidus [...]