Nativity Church
By Doug Tanoury

There is a Romanesque basilica
With a tall bell tower that rises
Above a neighborhood on
The near east side
It stands stately high above
The squalor and poverty below
Topped with bronze dome
And ornamental urns

Solid and stately and strong
I remember looking up at it often
As a child like some talisman
It protected me from all
Uncertainty and want and weakness
As I played in the shadows of
Wood frame houses in need of
Paint and repair

It reminded me always
Of a larger world
Outside the borders
Of Iroquois and Cadillac
Beyond the yellow sunrises
Above Pennsylvania Street and
Behind the swirling purple sunsets
Hanging over Gratiot Avenue