Stories

pussy willows fallen from
the pussy will tree
dandelions plucked
with small hands freed
no longer unwanted
the gifts they brought me

faces stained with hints
of blackberry juice
smiles shining, wide eyes
from a berry picking sleuth
containers nearly emptied
the gifts they brought me

stories written about family
clay ash trays, a mobile too
a card on mother’s day
the sound of music playing
to fill my heart & soul
the gifts they brought me

even the laughter & tears
the many unsaid hopes & fears
days filled with moments
none of them ever dull
& the best thing brought me
the gift of themselves

Image Taken From http://morguefile.com

My children and grandchildren are a huge part of my life and without them there would be a huge gap, a hole to large to ever fill. There have been joys and sorrows and challenges throughout the years but I would never trade any of it for the experiences I have shared with them have shaped my life and the person I am.

Picket signs once spoke
loud and clear of freedom
men walking along the
cobbled streets the soot
no longer rising from the
factory stacks where they
chose to fight for higher
wages and benefits for
growing families telling
their story again and
again heads held high
walking the picket line

Picket signs now tell us
who others are and who
everyone should be with
ideas pressing against
truths men and women fight
to bring about changes
fought for so long ago to
narrow a wide gap between
haves and have-nots in a
park or on a street corner
heads held high walking
another picket line

My dad worked for the Ford Motor Co and was always proud to carry a picket sign when it was his turn for ‘picket duty’ but he always managed to keep our family afloat by going down to the docks to find work. Then, unions accomplished far more than they do today, by fighting for increased wages and better benefits. In today’s world they are still fighting to achieve the same things but as most of these things were not even in place originally for most of the companies in the United States…giving the reason why unions were established to begin with…their fight is on a different level as companies generally have decent wages in place and benefits. But all in all companies that have unions for their employees are a plus as when a worker has a problem they have someone to back them up.