we lived one flight up in our
apartment building and whenever someone
would ring the downstairs bell
my mother would tell us to stay put
she would say 'if they want to see us bad enough
they can walk up the flight'
my brother Kevin used to tell me
to never answer the phone
if I was eating
my father always told us
not to worry too much about money
he would say 'money won't buy you happiness'
my mother would occasionally remark
'it takes all kinds'