Back to Issue Thirty-One

Newton Corner

BY MARK HALLIDAY

 

When we lived on Newtonville Avenue near Newton Corner
we did walk often up and down the slope to that local park
in our being alive together – however

there were other streets so near
on which we never walked together
for example Franklin Street (though five years later in another city
you lived with our baby on a Franklin Street)
or for example Fairmont Avenue

where we did not stroll together
or Bellevue Street which becomes Hyde Avenue
or Lombard Street which becomes George Street
where we never did amble under those modest trees
developing a profound shared sense of being
at home in our neighborhood but of course

we could not walk together on every street near us
it would not have made sense
given that we had only those days
Annie you know how it was

we were so busy trying to live our lives on Newtonville Avenue
we hardly had time – we had goals which seemed not compatible
with gently strolling and appreciating architecture or birds –
we had destinations which did not call for us to walk together
on for example Langdon Street or Claremont Street

we had only days Annie we had only what we could do.