ODE TO MY CHILDHOOD

I remember the short rusty fence 
 Bordering the cream house with the funny lower orange 'windows' 
 Later on painted to a sea green hue
The concrete 'veranda' with the wooden pillars 
 A room that never came into being 
 Marigolds and roses heralding spring
I recall the wooden homely 'kitchen'  
A cheerful fire crackling in the black Dover stove  
On a freezing June day  
The wind hissing at the grey dreary sky
I remember our bedroom  
Always dark at night, never with a light bulb  
With the two old beds 'abreast' each other 
 The small antique wardrobe, 
 Bursting at the seams with our clothes
I recall our breakfasts our lunches and our dinners  
The ongoing chatter in the room 
 Competing with the banging pots and pans The 'black and white' television murmuring in the background.
I remember my friends  
My sisters, brothers and cousins  
And the games we played  
Pada, hopscotch but mainly hide and seek  
Cause i was usually the easiest to find 
 Looking down from the sturdy Mango tree
I remember my place of birth  
The small quiet town  
That nurtured and molded me
Names like Yellow City 
 Schools like Rasco, Ndera and Nagga 
 Places like Malwatte and 20 19
I remember this  
I remember all 
 I remember my childhood  
I remember myself