saved

in Barcelona 1958
the gypsies came in wagons
pulled by
worn horses,
tethered loosely.
the women garbed in black
would hold their
naked babies in the air,
brown and slick
with oils, raising them up
to the sky,
and wail, they spoke in
Spanish. pleading.
you watched from the window
crouching down,
fearing some barter
was taking place, you for
them.
they came to the fence,
to the gate as your mother
went out to wave them away.
finally giving them
money.
American dollars.
you listened and watched
as the tall dark men
in black caps
took the reins and moved
the wagons down
the road. the hooves
clicking against the pavement.
somehow
you were saved.