Love Vantage

Dear Milton,

Do you remember the way you meant to so many of us then. I feel nothing has changed our story…

Milton was a small country boy who loved people. Milton was the youngest of fifteen siblings. His parents were married. He grew up in the church. He believed in his moral fate would lead him to saint hood. His fate would answer his devotion to God.

Aliases were a small city girl whose fate would bring her salvation. Aliases were the only child. Her parents were separated. She was raised on principles which would lead her life. Aliases believed God would answer her prayers to finding a solution to her problems.

Milton was a tall, dark skin man with grey eyes. He carried his weight well as many admired him for his talent. His demeanor was kind and gentle to the ladies. He was well respected by his community. Milton could charm a young girl to doing any chore he had in mind. Milton was sweet with his women. Milton was at the least friendly to others. Some had mistaken his kindness for being scared of him. Because of his height and weight, people often took it offensively, yet, were afraid to mess with him.

Milton was a musician. He played the harmonic saxophone and he played it well. Every weekend he would gather with his band at the church. Throughout the week he would practice jazz. He loved to play secular jazz. His mother wanted him to play for the church and that his love for jazz was not a good thing for him to do because it is sacra-religious.

Milton wanted his parents to believe in his music. His father was a deacon in the Baptist church. His father believed in Milton and supported his talent for the church. His father was afraid of Milton falling for becoming a sinner playing secular jazz music. He was afraid of him swaying many women. He was afraid of losing his son through his music.

Aliases were a small country girl who lived an isolated life. She had an over protected father who was afraid of her getting hurt. Her father would frown at the sight of any man who smiled at her beauty. He was afraid of losing her.

Aliases grew up afraid to speak openly, because she was afraid of losing touch of reality. Aliases were afraid of her own shadow. Aliases were afraid of the unfamiliar. Aliases were afraid of death. Life without her family is scary. It was about approaching death.

Aliases mother was pretentious. Her mother wanted her daughter to be happy; but she wanted it at her own expense. Her mother was afraid of letting her grow into a young woman. She too was over protective of her daughter. She did not want to lose her, for her own fear of being alone.

Aliases were afraid of her mother for holding her secluded from facing the real world. She felt her mother was controlling her life, by keeping her isolated from the facing the truth. Aliases had a disability and she grew up very confused by her surroundings. The people in her environment made her uncomfortable and uneasy. She did not have any friends or any family to socialize with. She led her life rehearsed and bitter.

Aliases were a talented poet. Aliases parents had a dream of her traveling and sharing her poetic verse with the world. Aliases had an interest the arts. Aliases were a genius in how she could articulate words into meaning. Many people felt moved as they listened to her passionate elements of speech. Often others saw her wisdom in the talent of lyrical phrase.

Milton was born in a small town of Jenkins, Mississippi. The population of Jenkins was small and had very few colored families. The community consisted of gravel roads, farms, and well which was the only source of having ground water. Aliases family lived in a city were near Clinton, a 150 mile drive. Milton belonged to this small community for over 25 years. Jenkins population was so small that everyone knew each other’s secrets.

Aliases had been in Clinton for over 20 years. She was born in Europe. She was of Jew descent. She wanted to be accepted in America. Her soul was sometimes used and cruel. She would probably die in Clinton for she was treated unkindly. She stood for poor white folks. At twenty she did not have a job. It was her, a tree, the wind and the insects.

Aliases mom worked as a maid, washing, ironing, and cooking, scrubbing and nursing children. She had a taste of American racism.

Milton father stood for civil rights. He often conformed the Bible verse into everyday life that mattered. His father felt God was right for what he did. He looked at circumstance kept the black man from having equal life than most white wealthy families.

Aliases family came from a traditional belief that they were an ailment of disposition that would not rest. The father was not present in her life to encourage and support the family. Her father cheated on her mother and by doing this lead to Aliases insolvency of understanding.

Often Milton passed along stories that would lead to corruption. His father could not afford to pay rent for the tin roof over his head. Milton often borrowed money for a bad gambling debt he paid to get his youngest sibling out of prison. Milton would gamble the clothes off his back for the sin of gambling. A sin that could cost him his life.

Aliases were a young vigilante. Her soul was saved for her innocence of being a virgin. She would write articles to bring part of the pay home. Boys in her town were lonesome. Most girls would sin in disgrace to have a man. Men who were not related and not married were very rare. Women were well attracted to men with money.

Aliases father was humble. He lived a double lie. Everyone said he did not care for Jenkins folk. He was always feuding with Milton family over a commodity. He was the first man to be the last remembered wanting to be around when they needed him most.

It was a late hot summer. The crickets chirped loudly in the distant darkness. Oleanders stretched the far horizon. There was the scent of grass. Aliases scent fragranced the air smelling likes a fresh meadow spring.

Milton had an argument with Aliases drunken father about being late on paying the rent. It had been overdue for weeks.

The summer had passed. Aliases did not go anywhere. She tried to hide the small mound of her belly was beginning to show. She was clueless with nowhere to go. She had been writing poetry in her writing journal. Her poems were the affection for Milton, a boy she grew found of at the church pic nick Aleese tried to hide her emotions for Milton, because she knew of her family distrust for his family. She did not feel the disgrace a biracial child would bring as long as she stayed home.

Aliases were humble for her child. As months passed, there were rumors spread about her pregnancy. “Whose child was it,” was most speculation of her being a prostitute. Aliases father could see it in her face that his young baby was in love. Aliases parents wondered, who. Aliases did not care what most folks were saying. She was in love.

Milton was shameless as he was when he invited Aliases to the park to hear him play. When Aliases read her poem to his jazz song at the church, heads began to turn. The church felt the excitement of being invited to a new world ensemble.

Aliases were expected to keep her child to be part of this nuance world they were creating in such a small town, in such a small place. Between the two worlds, they began to understand the meaning of life. Life is the meaning of love. It was important for them to share this composition that death is inevitable sounds of peace they created when they were together.

Aliases father never cursed at Milton’s father. Life promise had been granted through their child. The sun has lifted in peace. The meadow stretched far beyond the horizon. The crickets no longer wept. Words and music became harmonic.

Years passed and old ties became strong ties. Age began to falter hope. The children had grown and travelled sharing poems and music with the world. The kids lived a normal life. Aliases heart was entrusted to Milton’s soul. They made their mark on the world as cultural activist that changed Mississippi for the dignity of heart, the purpose of life and the harmony of respect.

And after all the years passed in the wind, I still love you.

Aliases