A place in

    urban Milwaukee where I began to lay eyes on the world,
to a family of neighbors on Elm avenue.
    The tree out the front window,

        the one that I planted.

A place where

    the town was cleared of candy on October 31,
an annual tradition.
    The hills acting as imaginary battlegrounds,
        now in a war with nature.

Somewhere around

    the paintballs flying past my head,
a few into it.
    The scattered pieces of electronics over the floor.
        Right beside, me scratching my head.

A family that

    learned how to make each other happy,
without a great deal to work with.
    A group of people that likes to get together on the weekends,
          still going strong 17 years later.

A place near

    the strength that was gained from failure:
school, bad decisions, and learning life heedlessly.
    To the Rocky Mountains in Colorado,
        hopefully to be seen in the morning with the sunrise.

A place that

    taught me, fed me, and made me…well, me.
Somewhere that will be a piece of me and structure me,
    Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
        The first place I ever lay eyes on.