Poverty Poem by June Stepansky

We had no costly toys
when we were young.
We had penny candy.
We had marbles.
We played hide-and-seek,
and captain may I.
We jumped rope,
double-Dutch.
We listened to
the accordion man
down the street.
We sent in box-tops
to radio stations
for code badges
and code rings.
We wrote to magazines
for free miniatures
of cereals and lotions.
Our neighbors were kindly.
Our friends were gentle.
We never even guessed
that we were poor.