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Priorities

Nougat, nuts, a hint of salt
Bought from the corner store
A trip around the board
Of a game called Life
All playful reminders
That each day has a night
As does each princess
Who waits for Mr. Right

A work place has a job
That offers up a check
For doing what's expected
Be it filer or tech
When all is said and finished
A pink slip is in store
The economy has problems

There isn't any more

The house is now foreclosing
Whatever shall we do
A tax rebate is in the mail
It will surely get us through
Not so fast, the hurricane
Has flooded half the town
The plane has landed
In our midst
And taken buildings down

The soldiers have gone off to war
Their families left behind
The leaders fight to get the job
To make this country fine

I sit and wonder as I watch
If all is as they say
My child saw a gun at school
The sixth grader got away
After threatening another boy
And beating up a girl
He left before the cops showed up
Everything is in a whirl

Do I worry about the paycheck
Or find a place to hide
My kid's not safe at school today
And now the girl has died

It seems a trifle unimportant
To collect for work I do
When I need to keep my child safe
He can't even walk to school
The neighbor has been out of jail
For eyeing little boys
The other one has offered drugs
To many passersby
I'm not afraid, but numb for sure
No paycheck could reward
The work of raising children
Who deserve a better world

Learn more about this author, M. J. Joachim.
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