Carson McCullers*
Martha Klein Henrickson
Carson McCullers was the first
real writer to touch me,
I was 15 on a muggy day in Chicago
like today
still heat pounding the
pavement
carpeted halls heavy
back porches
full of interest for
my only knowing New York mind
I became Frankie
full of vanilla
innocence and curiosity
my first taste of something else
was going to happen as screen
doors banged gently on wooden frames
exploring unfamiliar streets in
neighborhoods with odd names
drinking pop
pulling an invisible wagon
I discovered myself
walking alone and happy
in a Chicago that turned into a
hot southern place and still
is in my memory
between humid breaths now
*Carson McCullers was an American writer and playwright. She was born in Columbus, Georgia in
1917 and died in Nyack, New York in 1967. Some of her writings became plays and movies. One of
her most famous works, “The Member of the Wedding” was the inspiration for this piece after my
mother took me to see the play when I was nine years old.
About the author
Martha Klein Henrickson has been writing about her feelings since she was a teenager. She is a visual artist who has used a camera for the last 40 plus years as a means of expression. Most writings happen when she is touched by something. For many years, Martha wrote on scraps of paper when sitting in her car waiting to pick her children up from school. She has been writing poetry for the last 30 years after a poet told her that she should keep writing. Her pieces have been published in the Northern Cardinal Review and Juniper. She has four self-published chapbooks and is currently working on another. Find out more at marthahenrickson.com.