Memories of Childhood

Memories of Childhood

From a haze I remember

mom with her clutch of ration books,

at the butcher pondering price

and ration coupons needed.

Was forty-nine cents a pound and

one coupon a better deal for this, than

that at thirty-nine cents and two coupons.

From the haze I remember

on the front porch, mom

with neighbors Lily and Gert.

Sometimes with a cheese graters and bars

of lye soap they made washing flakes.

Sometimes they knitted scarves and caps

to go into care packages to be sent somewhere.

A truck or two of singing teens would drive by

going to help local farmer tend the crops.

Mom and her friends talked about the recent

news – usually the war and uttered their

hopes and fears for the boys overseas.

From the haze I remember asking

if after the war would there be no

more news and only music on the radio.

There were radio programs

like “Fibber McGee and Molly”

Fibber usually tried to bend or break

some war effort rule or other, and

he always got into trouble.

From the haze I remember

when just half a decade old,

bits and pieces of those times.