Month: May 2020

“Polly… certainly believed that [Samuel] would make a fine companion. Unfortunately for fifteen-year-old Polly, her father thought otherwise… His plans came to naught, however, when the two young lovers eloped in 1796… Andrew and Rachel Jackson had been happy to assist Samuel and Polly in eloping…” – Old Hickory’s Nephew: The Political and Private Struggles of Andrew Jackson Donelson by Mark R. Cheathem 

The grass sank between

the soles of my sandals  

while we passed under the fences 

like playing a game of limbo 

trespassing into history 

Daniel Smith’s castle

crafted from limestone 

glistened in the moonlight  

and the shore of Old Hickory Lake 

sang to us, despite being outlaws.

We cited lines 

from Tennessee storytelling  

recalling the time 

that Sam Donelson

and Andrew Jackson crossed 

the river— 

the summer humidity shallowing the waters

enough for horses 

to trot across them. 

The cool Tennessee air kissing the backs of their necks

while slivers of moonlight

illuminated their trail. 

We wondered aloud 

how the ladder must have sounded 

as it brushed up against Polly Smith’s windowpane

how she grasped on to tree branches,  

splinters piercing the palms of her hands

while climbing down

to the grass we stood on.  

How the trio galloped to Hunter’s Hill,

against the light of the morning sun,  

a priest waiting earnestly 

to affirm their elopement. 

We walked to the family cemetery,

protected by stone walls

eroded by time and tourists’ touch.

Behind the unlocked wrought-iron gate,

tombstones like chess pieces 

sit stoically, 

marking each white body 

encased in the slave-tilled earth.

why did you 

         always say

“a bird will use it 

         to make a nest”

when you stomped embers

         of half-burned cigarettes 

into the crevices 

         of concrete paths – 

as if any sensible 

         creature

would want to taste 

         your nicotine

               or smell the remnants 

                         or your whiskey-soaked breath?