Friend

Who is Detroit?
Have you met her?
Do you know her?

I thought I did.

I met her 25 years ago.

Kevin and Angela introduced her to me.

They met her through Betty, Rod, Howard, Mattie, Florine, Andy and a bunch of other folks.

I’ve known her this long and
still couldn’t tell you her middle name.

I don’t quite know how old she is but she seems to have more gray hair she should at her age.
But I like how it matches her eyes.

I don’t know where she went to school.
I don’t know what block she lives on
but I know her neighborhood doesn’t have a fancy name.

I don’t know her favorite song, movie or food.

At one point I thought her favorite restaurant was Xochimilco
But it’s not.

I never met her parents but I know her mom is black/Hispanic mixed and her dad is white. Her family is more diverse than mine. I’m always surprised when she introduces me to her cousins.

She’s the middle child in her family.
She doesn’t quite fit in
at home, at school, at church, or at work though she’s always the life of a party.

She has one of those familiar faces,
though there’s nothing common about it.

People think she’s unintelligent because she’s a single mother
and her English isn’t perfect.

But they forget that she speaks Arabic, Spanish, German, Greek, Chinese, street and French.

She cooks, sings and dances better than anyone I’ve ever met
and she works harder than anyone you’ll ever meet.

A lot of people claim to be her friend
but they’ve never been to her house,
never met her parents,
and they definitely don’t know her middle name.

I want to be her friend.

Don’t know if she’s interested.