Sister
how sweet is the syrup
of your love?
I know not —
but no other woman
has touched my heart so special.
I weep for you
knowing your sorrows
pray so you may have no fears.
I look at you
your mother’s child
your eyes
so full of life and hope
I know
I am at home
in the fruits of man with you.
I stand against any man
who treats you wrong
bow to any who feel you like I.
I let the world know
my heart’s at home
with you.
I forget not
who you are
where you’ve been
where you’re destined to go
like the creation of the world
so is my love
for you, My Sister!
© B.Michael Hunter 1975
A Significant Postscript:
We stumbled across “Sister” just a few weeks before launching What I Miss? The writing was in a sealed envelope, addressed to B.Michael. June “75” was written on the back. However, this doesn’t appear to be his handwriting.
This envelope, in turn, was in another sealed envelope, also addressed to B.Michael, this time in his own handwriting. The return address, from “Hunter” at the same address, is written by someone other than him. (If anyone reading this recognizes the penmanship, please let us know!) He, or someone, had mailed it — certified no less! — through the U.S. Postal Service, postmarked at the Lenox Hill Post Office on June 23, 1975, less than 2 miles from his home. He would have recently turned 17 years old. Curiouser and curiouser. Why did B.Michael keep it sealed for more than 25 years? We hesitated, not wishing to disturb the potential Indian Jones-esque spirit lying dormant, by the time we found it, for almost four decades!
We speculated about the subject of the writing, which read more like a poem. For a moment we wondered if he was referring to his older, biological sister, Victoria. Or to Sheilah’s mother Frieda — the favorite sister of B.Michael’s mother, Sheila — who had died earlier that year. Sounded more like Shakespeare writing to his mysterious Dark Lady. Who was this unnamed love interest? Did she ever get to read it, or hear it recited to her? B.Michael, what are we missing?