Author¿s Note: If you bring your own coffee when you leave town, if you believe the word axe is a verb, if you consider Halloween a major holiday, then these poems are for you. If you are not familiar with New Orleans some of these poems may require a little work, but give it a try. After all, for generations New Orleans poetry lovers have cheerfully dealt with cold-country images foreign to our experience. My hero, Robert Frost, sent us frozenground swells, a cord of maple, and birches bent by ice storms. If you need a little help ask a local, but be sure you have at least an hour to spare you may find yourself sipping refreshment in the shaded courtyard of the Napoleon House as a friendly native explains the origin of the phrase neutral ground. Whoever you may be visitor, native, friend or family, open your heart to our city and hear her declaration: I am the Lady of the River The city of your dreams And I am stronger than I seem. Stay with me. Believe in me. Love me. I will be young again.