Work Text:
I remember the first time I fixed up my clothes
with the little sewing kit I bought at keene’s
with my babysitting money I had made that week.
I had a hole in the collar of my sweater
so I took the dark thread and stitched it together.
My mom taught me how to sew.
Well, just the basic stuff.
The darning stitch is for fixing clothes,
she taught me that one first.
…
We didn’t have a lot of money growing up.
I got some of her old clothes,
and,
and stuff from the thrift store in town.
Our house had dirty walls and creaking doors.
They definitely wanted a better life for me than they had.
But living there was like living in hell.
Not that my house in Chicago was really any better.
It may have been grandiose and clean,
but it was just like hell.
My real home was with the losers that summer.
Fixing up tears over scraped knees,
And the holes in favorite sweatshirts.
Sewing buttons back on,
And helping us all look presentable before
we all went our ways.
We all went our ways.