i knew a woman
who was in Paris in 1927
on the day that Lindberg landed.

she talked
about the crowds
and the noise and the joy.

she
talked
about the mess
and the shouts and the tears.

she was told
they hadn’t seen crowds like that
since the day the war to end all wars came to an end.

she
was young
and worked for one
of the little magazines that
sold in Montparnasse and nowhere else.

her name was Claire
and she was over 90 when we met

and she
served us
chowder in antique bowls
that could have been new when she

was a girl
and Lindberg landed
and all the world got crazy, wild and drunk.

– John Yamrus