BLOOMFIELD

My next door neighbors to the right were Jim and Rose
An elderly couple
There was a rose bush by their house that Jim planted in 1950
Planted it when they moved in, I was told
It was tall and blossomed a beautiful single flower every year
To the right of Jim and Rose
Lived our mailman Jimmy
A great guy
He had a stutter
But wasn't shy of busting my balls
if I wore socks with flip-flops outside of the house
AND Patty (his wife) who had the loudest voice in the neighborhood
BUT she was friendly as can be
and their son
Jimmy
Who was shy
Quiet
Across the street
Were
James and Kristin
Good people
So yeah
Jim
Jimmy
Jimmy
and James
Were my neighbors
and Rose and Kristin and Patty
and Larry the cool black guy
Seriously he was a super nice with a deep voice
Sometimes we'd hang out
I liked them all
Jim
The elder statesman of the group
grew tomatoes and basil
He was great at it and sometimes I'd come home
to a paper bag tied to my doorknob
With cucumbers, basil and tomatoes
Eventually
Jim passed
Rose lived on
When I would mow my lawn
I would mow the front of her yard as well
and Jimmy the mailman would mow the back
That rose bush on the side of her house
continued to produce a beautiful pink flower
Every year I lived there
I loved this little neighborhood
packed with Jimmys and tomatoes and a Rose and kindness