Thursday, October 31, 2024

The Crossing

Poetry, by John DeSantis

When the old immigrants came to America

they came on boats

No luxury liners or steamships these

The immigrants packed around cargo

tight as sardines

Many succumbed

to the horrible stench

of the hold below

to the diseases that proliferated

others grew sick and afraid

as many of them

scarcely children themselves

watched the ocean mercilessly break

over the bow

They wondered would they ever make it

 

On such a ship as these

my seventeen year old father

his yearning for America

exceeded only by

his longing for land

embarked from Italy

and disembarked

upon Ellis Island

He kissed the ground

he told me

not so happy to be in America

as to have left behind

the stormy sea


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Author

  • John DeSantis

    John DeSantis is a retired New York City teacher who lived the better part of his years in the borough of the Bronx prior to relocating to northeast Pennsylvania five years ago. In addition to teaching ] high school mathematics for almost fifteen years, he spent sixteen years teaching special education in the same NYC system. During those years he taught travel training, special reading and mathematics to mentally disabled high school students. The capstone of his career was a three-year involvement in a pilot program for the severely and profoundly multiply handicapped. He had an opportunity to employ many principles of behavior modification there with great success. Since his retirement, he has divided his time between tutoring, pursuing a doctorate in English Literature and writing. He has written two plays, several short stories, numerous essays, memoirs and poetry.His poetry has been published in almost a score of anthologies.

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John DeSantis
John DeSantis
John DeSantis is a retired New York City teacher who lived the better part of his years in the borough of the Bronx prior to relocating to northeast Pennsylvania five years ago. In addition to teaching ] high school mathematics for almost fifteen years, he spent sixteen years teaching special education in the same NYC system. During those years he taught travel training, special reading and mathematics to mentally disabled high school students. The capstone of his career was a three-year involvement in a pilot program for the severely and profoundly multiply handicapped. He had an opportunity to employ many principles of behavior modification there with great success. Since his retirement, he has divided his time between tutoring, pursuing a doctorate in English Literature and writing. He has written two plays, several short stories, numerous essays, memoirs and poetry.His poetry has been published in almost a score of anthologies.
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