Resurrection
Or how my great-great-grandmother reinvented herself
Rosie Lee Bullard (1906-2002) first row, third from left
Mt. Sinai Missionary Baptist Church, Chicago, IL
Baptist Training Union (BTU)
Legend has it Ms. Bullard shot a man
dead back in 1934 for trying
to rape her. Say she watched
Opelika’s red clay take a swig
of his blood
the way that nigga said he was gone
sop her up with a biscuit. Cost her
sixty days time
because she didn’t have the $44.30.
Left lil Mary, Black Mary,
with cousin Easter
on Thanksgiving, Christmas,
& New Year’s too.
But she’ll survive Birmingham
while Ms. Bullard becomes Rosie,
keeping Mattie in that county jail
& in grandpa Anderson Bullard’s arms.
After all, she was Rosie in that boarding house
where the mistress was called Mattie
& Rosa in Ms. Richardson’s home.
Then Ms. Rosa Lee Bullard became
Mrs. Davis
& Mrs. Murph
& Mrs. Hines
& Mrs. Vance
somewhere in-between the colored section
of that L&N Railroad ride to Chicago
or was it Southern Railway?
Does it matter? I’m here now.
Details be damned.
In June of ‘62 Jesus was at Mt. Sinai
so Mrs. Bullard-Vance joined the Beautifying Club
& the Mission
& Faith Impact
& the Ora Cumming Bible class.
What pistol? What charge? Nothing
but the blood cause Jesus paid it all, baby.
Ann Home’s servant? That was in Coosa.
I’m a business woman now. Got a thrift shop
& two restaurants. Ain’t nothing below
the mason-dixon got to follow me above.
Ain’t nothing resurrected here but me
& Jesus.











what a beautiful tribute and a life well lived.