The landlord was one of those
you hear about
who squeeze the extra dime
he raised the rent four times
made us deal with the damage
when the upstairs apartment
flooded down and warped our floor
and when we finally called it quits
after ten successful years
where Shirley trained and sent
her students to major companies
and gave scholarships
to children in the neighborhood
who otherwise could not afford
and functioned as a community center
and we loved everybody
and they loved back
all our lives
enriched together
and the landlord
tried to make us leave the floor
so he could overcharge the next
and we said no it’s not attached
belongs to us and sold it to our friends
I mention the old days
when Shirley’s ballet studio
just a few blocks over
featured an exercise class
for pregnant mothers
and the stereotypical landlord
came by to collect the rent
and loudly denounced
What kind of dance studio is this
It’s full of fat women!
And they rose to drive him out
almost strung him up
chastened him
and got back to the class.