At first she had nothing
Longing for things
She picked up pennies
Gazing shop window
Coveting friends’ things
Cousins hand me downs
Odds and ends
She made the most of
Pennies from dad
Stretched so far
Cleverly craving filled
Fifteen first job
Cash in hand
Saved for books
To feed a mind
When friends bought food
She began collecting
Scraps of paper
From school bins
Buttons from floors
Shells from the beach
Money was for books
Freely taken the rest
And now she is grown
Books line her walls
Shored up words
To fill her head
Keep nightmares at bay
And boxes and packets
Of lost and found things
Of ribbons and sequins
Beads shells rocks
Twigs and twine
Old wrappings and
Paper sweet bags
So what would she want
With a gift not a book
She has everything
She ever could want.
© Jennifer Winterburn
