Nancy Scott

OR SO IT SEEMED

He was a fine raconteur, drawing applause
for his stories about growing up
in the hard coal region of Pennsylvania.
How easy to tattoo hayseed on his forehead
had he not been a scholar and colleague.
Or so it seemed.

While others were harassed into producing
what amounted to intellectual trash
or chastised for tribal squabbles which, in truth,
were no more than penis envy,
his outlier star shone brightly.
Or so it seemed.

How could one find fault with a colleague
who, as a child, ate onion sandwiches for lunch,
shared one teacher with six grades
in a single room schoolhouse, and took turns
chipping ice in the privy on cold winter days?
Or so it seemed.

His father died of black lung disease; his mother
heart failure because they could not afford
a doctor. The sons delivered papers for pennies.
Yet, all three managed to earn PhDs.
What an amazing story!
Or so it seemed.

Alas, when the skein of lies began to unravel,
he was hard-pressed to explain.
Whatever our goals, how many of us wish
we could inhabit a different history?
Sure, go ahead and improvise,
but pray no one steps forward to debunk it!


Gerald So's YouTube video reading of "Or So It Seemed":



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Nancy confesses: "Identity theft is not a rarity. This poem is actually true, I think. I want to believe it happened that way but I am not sure. I am not a suspicious person, but I’m afraid to answer the door to a woman with child asking if Bennie lives there."

NANCY SCOTT has been managing editor of U.S.1 Worksheets for more than a decade. She is also the author of nine books of poetry and a novella, Marriage by Fire (Big Top Publishing Company, 2018). Before she retired and turned to writing, she had a long career as a social worker for the State of New Jersey which informed and inspired many of her poems. Originally from the Chicago area, she has resided in New Jersey for many years. www.nancyscott.net