A poem a day for 2013 - day 315 - Soul. Food. Man.

An old black man on the 210 bus today took time south on Crenshaw
To explain the difference between Texas pumpkin pie and California pumpkin pie
And how sweet potato pie ain't like neither one
And bean pie can't compare
Imitation crab meat is for salads and don't cook well in gumbo
And rue is only for thickness
Soupy gumbo taste just as good
Depending on how you stir
And there is a special syrup for yams
I listened and imagined him in the kitchen as a boy with his mother
He quieted the bus with his words smell like collard
Like turnip
Soul
Potatoes
From Washington Ave
To Vernon