A Sunday Outing, 1929
A photo tucked in an old album,
a moment preserved in time,
like an insect set in amber…
a youth group outing,
in the busy Hamburg harbor— quiet, sleepy,
a summer Sunday afternoon.
The girls with bobbed hair
in the latest flapper style
tanned arms in charming sundresses.
Sporty boys in rolled shirtsleeves
a few sweating in ties
their mamas must have made them wear
.
Some visibly shy, others eager,
flirted and joked, posed boldly
with their arms around girls for the photo.
I’m certain they all looked forward to this day,
and I know my father and his twin brother
scrimped to pay the fee,
others did too in the tight Weimar economy.
I’m guessing the photographer said “watch the birdie”
or something like that.
Pranksters, in the middle, my father and uncle,
had big mischievous grins
while others smiled only tentatively.
This handsome group still had reasons to laugh,
to be fun-loving teens on that summer day
though there was not much time left.
They had no clue their hourglass
was fast running out.
My father was sweet on Margo.
I wonder which smiling face was hers?
I know she perished.
Does anyone even remember her
or is her memory relegated to this photograph
of a long-forgotten summer’s outing.
I’ll remember you Margo
