The Man Atop City Hall

A symbol of Philadelphia

William Penn. Photo by the author.

I once spent a year in Philadelphia. I think it was on a Sunday.
— W. C. Fields

I used to wear the bronze hat
of William Penn,
the founder of Pennsylvania
who stands atop City Hall
in Philadelphia.
I was the one who remembered
how things were
during the revolutionary days
when freedom was a passion
and not a personal insult.
I was here when they signed
the Declaration of Independence
and when they bombed MOVE
on Osage Avenue.
I was here when the Sixers
won the championship in ‘83
and had a parade down Broad.
I remember what it felt like
to live in the sky,
my head in the clouds,
watching over my brothers
and sisters,
morning and night
and the change
of each season.
Although I love my place of birth,
I never want to live there again,
nor do I want to forget
how proudly I once stood.