at Sam Houston Coliseum in the 1950's and 1960's
by Suzanne Morris
 |
The Southwest Citizen (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 3, No. 43, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 2, 1950 |
The lawyer [Aaron Siri] helping Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pick federal health officials for the incoming Trump administration has petitioned the government to revoke its approval of the polio vaccine, which for decades has protected millions of people from a virus that can cause paralysis or death. —The New York Times, December 15, 2024
I am staring at the bald pate of
Mr. Siri as he imparts his wisdom
to the U.S. Congress
when my years of dancing at the
annual Crippled Children’s Ball
come back to mind with a
sting of irony that
I didn’t see back then, though
the children being honored surely did
when crossing the floor
with hitching steps in
steel braces and leather stocks
in the somersaulting spotlights,
names broadcast
from high above
a Shriner in bejeweled fez
dispensing handshakes as
the audience cheered.
One by one, the survivors came,
withered limbs cocooned in
full-length gowns or creased dress pants
as each of us waited in the wings
in stage make-up
sequined bodice and revealing tu-tu:
Dancers dancing at the
Crippled Children’s Ball.
Metal rotating on hinges
propelled brave steps
into the post-polio world
of watching others demonstrate
dainty pirouettes and
fouettés en pointe
then bid farewell with
curtsies and pixie smiles
from the arena stage floor.
Dancers dancing at the
Crippled Children’s Ball.
The brief insult of a
needle prick
saved us from all
they had endured
and later still,
even less an event:
one sugar cube
drenched in tu-tu pink.
Dancers dancing at the
Crippled Children’s Ball.
Suzanne Morris resides in Cherokee County, Texas, where she writes poetry, reads a lot, and tries, with little success, to make sense of the news.
