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The Urge
- Article from:
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Black Renaissance
- Article date:
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January 1, 2008
- Author:
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Copyright informationCopyright Institute of African American Affairs Winter 2008. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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in the check-out line at Safeway,
fighting the urge to blush when
a cashier says, if I was five years
younger, you'd be in trouble
"boy, you gotta do more than
just grin at that fine woman,"
my father would say before
going on bout dental cost and
how I better show his money
well-spent when I smile
he could never let me forget
an overbite and 3 years of braces
have a nice day the cashier
winks and the urge overwhelms
me, a fortune-cookie
proverbs pops into my head:
"a smile is your personal
welcome mat"
a month before, I caught
a woman's eyes in ...