Philadelphia

I dream of my city, of Philadelphia, of a
time when peace will come to its streets.
I see the people of this city, a city I love
in white, black, yellow, tan and brown. I
celebrate the people of my city, the good
people who love their families aspire to
the same goals of peace, comfort, love.
This is not an easy city, a city named for
love. We have overcome resistance through
the centuries for this is a city of immigrants
blending in overtime who chart their own
course, strengthen neighborhoods as their
culture becomes part of the fabric of this
city that I love. .

And in this city I dream of, this city that
I love, I am a realist, know of the hard
scrabble neighborhoods, have walked its
tough streets, survived a few fights here
and there and yet in every neighborhood
there is hope and love and people who
dream as I do of a time when peace will
come to its streets. I have sung my poems
I have sung to end the violence, I have
sung of its beauty, I have sung of its people.
I sing now for my city, my Philadelphia..

I sing to the people of Philadelphia
I sing from Broad and Glenwood
from 68th and Woodbine
from Rhawn and Oxford
from Cottman and Frankford
from Benner and Torresdale
from 10th and Washington
from 70th and Woodland
from 52nd and Lancaster
from Ridge and Ripka
from all the streets of the city, I sing of my
dream, that peace will come to our streets.
I raise my hands to the sky, sing my poems
have hope for Philadelphia.

Listen to an audio version of this poem—read by the author—here. And read more from our deep poetry archives here.

g emil reutter is a writer of poems and stories. He can be found here.