Pennies

 Macy Huston Adams

The cushion extended across

red pickup, rusted in glory.

 

My legs swung from its elevation,

too short to touch pilled floors.

 

It moaned as we drove,

each bump lifting me into the air.

 

We could take on the world—

with brazen perception, we did.

 

Essential mission at hand:

find a gift for Mom.

 

I was blissfully unaware of our financial

predicament. Elusive thrift sign summoned.

 

Limitless possibility racks were stacked:

 

Snow globes, bike parts, underwear baskets,

faux flowers, sticky candles, held together

 

by a structurally sound layer of dust and dirt.

Treasure amid gold, young eyes grew wide.

 

Foot on shelf, reaching to grasp a metallic

set of luxury. Acquired. Accomplished.

 

Childlike hopping and pleading led to

an early unboxing. Out of the bag,

 

she pulled three foil disposable baking pans.

Speechless.

 

I knew they were perfect, her distaste

for cleaning, passion for baking assured me.

 

Through the wall, through the night,

I listened to her cry.

 
 

Macy Huston Adams is a Southern writer based in Oklahoma with roots in Arkansas and Tennessee. Her poetry is greatly inspired by her upbringing with themes of identity and growth. She has a bachelor’s degree in creative writing from the University of Central Oklahoma and is currently pursuing a graduate degree in poetry at Oklahoma State University.