FOREIGN EXCHANGE
by Mark Vinz
Benny Martinelli used to tell stories
about the North End. When I gave
him a ride home after work one day
we had to tour his neighborhood -
every house where a relative lived,
which was every house for blocks.
His mother said I looked like a
good boy, but his father only
wanted to know where I came from.
When I mentioned going away to
college in the fall, all conversation
stopped. What the hell did he know
anyway? his father said. Just a
lousy cobbler, but he had friends.
Benny told me later not to worry
about it - things had been hard for
his family. Next time, he'd come
to my house out in the suburbs,
bring his camera and take some
shots of the places my people lived.
I had to tell him there weren't any,
and then it seemed time for me to go.
His mother waved from the steps,
his father stayed inside, and Benny
snapped a picture as I drove away,
shouting for me to smile, that he'd
send me a copy if anything turned out.
"Foreign Exchange" is from Mark Vinz's Long Distance, forthcoming in Spring, 2006, from MWPH Books, PO Box 8 Fairwater, WI 53931. Vinz was born in Rugby, North Dakota, and is a true son of the prairie. Since 1968 he has taught at Moorhead State University. His poems and stories have appeared in numerous periodicals and anthologies. His other books include: The Weird Kid, Climbing the Stairs, Mixed Blessings, Late Night Calls, Minnesota Gothic, and Affinities. With Thom Tammaro, he co-edited Imagining Home: Writing from the Midwest, which was discussed in these pages in my "Reflections on Books." I interviewed Mark for my Vagabond project on March 20, 2004, at his home in Moorhead, Minnesota.
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