Poetic Day 5 of National Poetry Month, 2019

 

Poetic Day 5 of National Poetry Month:  April 5, 2019

 

With my poetic plan of posting each April weekday a new poem and five prompts, the following poem-of-the-day and five prompts will close the first week of National Poetry Month (NPM) on WORDWALK.  Although I will not be posting during the weekends of April, I do hope you will return to WORDWALK on Monday and throughout the upcoming second week of NPM.  Please remember the motto for NPM:

 

“Read a poem!  Write a poem!  Share a poem!”

 

In the Days before Plastic

 

poem by Alice Jane-Marie Massa

 

At my grandparents’ store on the top of the hill,

one of the more commonly heard phrases was:

“Put it on my bill.”

Without comment or hesitation,

the bill was tallied

with nothing for the till.

 

Placing groceries on the bill

was never a question

because we knew all the customers

and knew most would eventually pay

without an urge or mention.

In those days when plastic was unknown

and checks were relatively rare,

I never felt, in the family store,

any financial tension.

 

However, To the right of an enamel white scale

and pass-through of the long north counter,

to the left of the one wooden cash register

was an oversized Rolodex-type file

of ten-by-twenty-inch metal plates,

on each of which were ten strong clips

for holding bills that would be paid after a while.

 

As a child in the two-story building

that was one of three grocery stores of our small town,

I recall infrequently hearing,

“I’ll pay a little on my bill on Friday.”

 

Before plastic, before Walmart, before Amazon–

there once were precious small towns

with grocery stores owned

by local, caring folks.

 

Those days were buried with my ancestors,

but pieces of memories poetically live on.

 

* * *

 

PROMPTS FOR DAY FIVE OF NATIONAL POETRY MONTH

 

1. Write a poem focusing on small-town living of decades ago.
2. Write a poem about a unique shopping experience.
3. Write a poem about the oldest person whom you know on your family tree.
4. Write a poem in which you mention or describe an old piece of equipment (such as a wooden cash register).
5. Write a poem in which Friday plays a significant part.

 

 

With a poetic or dramatic pause until Monday,

Alice and Leader Dog Willow

 

April 5, 2019, Friday

Thanks for reading this piece and honoring its copyright.

 

 

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