NEVER ENOUGH
the morning sun rises up high to halo the mountain gold
but spreads no gold dust on the valley of desire
the boys wake with buttermilk biscuits
and go out to chop wood for the fire
the house slips sideways
and messages come down the wire
NOT ENOUGH MONEY
SEND MORE MONEY
REPOSSESSION
THREE MONTHS BEHIND
NOT ENOUGH MONEY
SEND MORE MONEY
And the children demand where is Santa Claus?
I want a shiny new bike to ride
Mother my shoes have holes,
my feet hurt
Mother a telescope,
the stars aren’t close enough
Debts tallied in stone buildings of dead eyes,
crammed wall to wall with file cabinets
filled with believable lies
The calls come in
WHEN WILL YOU SEND?
THIS AN ATTEMPT TO COLLECT A DEBT
FURTHER ACTION WILL BE TAKEN
not enough money
never enough money
the ads go out
FAMILY HEIRLOOM
MAKE ME AN OFFER
I HAVE SEVEN SONS WITH GOOD STRONG BACKS
TWO DAUGHTERS WITH FINGERS CALLOUS TO THE NEEDLE
WILL WORK FOR MONEY, FOOD, OR SOCIAL STATUS
mother, please, a typewriter for Christmas.
NOT ENOUGH MONEY
NEVER ENOUGH MONEY
but mother the world sways
This vertigo is unbearable
I feel too much
The stars make me swoon,
I make love to moons,
caress the soft earth with my hips,
and my lips lap at the wine of words
You dream and I ache
Today I want three yards of chiffon,
tomorrow I want to walk with my head held high,
but first my son we must survive.
But mother my dreams.
Dreams we can’t eat.
The world rings to ching a ling ding
ching a ling
And mother goes outside
to shake change from her children’s pockets,
goes outside
to sweat dreams from her children’s eyes,
goes outside
to shake change from her children’s pockets.
Ching a ling ding ching a ling.
Christopher James Weddle ©
