Coke Bottles Are Worth a Nickel

https://soundcloud.com/user-74706948/coke-bottles-are-worth-a-nickel-by-james-andersen

Growing up Southern;
kind not seen on TV,
the old tin trailer,
window unit air conditioner,
always facing the road.

School pictures every year,
fresh hair cut and thrift store suit.
Hold that smile, no retakes,
the proofs going in the album --
"boy ain't you grow'n up"

Hee Haw reruns keep grandpa happy,
reminding him of a time that never was.
That's alright, though, 
we like to hear about it anyway --
Bedtime stories before he leaves,
Got to clean the tanks at the paint factory.

Work in the garden all summer long
fighting weeds while momma cleans houses.
Daddy left to look for work about four years ago.
He ain't found it yet, but we still see him.
He lives with his girlfriend just down the road.

Coke bottles are worth a nickel,
"so pick 'em up."

Author's Note

A revised version with an audio link.

Reviews

[Lydia Shutter]

A slice of life poem. Maybe life was not peachy, but it was YOUR life and I sense there was a lot of love coming from your mom in that old tin trailer. We all knew the value of a nickel back then....and we worked from a young age. I can remember babysitting for fifty cents an hour and then giving my parents some of that money. They are our memories and they make us who we are. Well written. Lydi**

[James]

Yes, it is our memories who make us who we are. As much as I don't miss that trailer, I do miss growing up then and there.

[Hyacinth]

This is sweet and real. I can see how it was hard yet also there's a sense that it's worth it. I always wonder how it was like growing up a few years before, and you satisfied my curiosity. Great pace and rythm as well.

[Miss Sharon]

Well this surely brings back memories for me! I had a little pony and each day after school I'd ride her down to the little store on the corner and buy an Orange Crush. I had to share the last few sips with Belle (the pony) or she would fuss all the way home...really! Thanks for this write. I love it. ~Sharon

[emmajoy]

This took me into another world... a happy but hard one... not self.pitying either as if you learned how to live in your own skin because of it. Finely put and memorable ..

[James]

Thank you, it was happy and hard, I'm glad you liked it.

[Papaya]

I love this one. A snap shot taken from a moment I'm life.
We didn't have much growing up. But we made do.

[James]

I'm glad you liked this, I took straight from my childhood.

[Papaya]

It has that feel. I love it.

[Jacob Clifford]

Soulful and nostalgic. I quite like this little slice of life.

[Shimmerbliss/CAF]

I think this is one of my favorites so far. You take us there and show us around, through the years, and thereby give us a sense of who you are and your history. It is so well written and I love your ending. Bottles were indeed worth something then, and we always picked them up to "turn them in". Seems like we could just take them to the store and get our money...no waiting. Great job. I love this.

[James]

Thank you again, and unlike the last one, this one is about as true to life as I could make it. Poor-boy life in the rural South For some reason, I don't feel bitter about any of it anymore. If I could still collect coke bottles for cash I would.

[Thomas Fitzgerald]

A most intriguing piece that creates a vast river that little bit smaller between the continents, if just for a moment, well done, good read.

[James]

Thank you for that kind and intriguing review. Maybe life over there is not so different after all.

[...]

Hello James :) You really brought this one to life. So much soul in it, and a beating heart too. Just how it was too. I remember Hee Haw and my dad telling us to turn the channel lol We were his remote :) Reading this was kinda bitter sweet, as in a cold glass of fresh squeezed lemon aid on a hot lazy day, if that makes sense. Awesome portrait of truth...truly

[James]

Makes perfect sense. I'm so glad you liked this and it's good to see you again.

[...]

But I have been by. I snuck in the back door of your possessed kitchen :) You just didn't see me lol

[boblakin]

The third stanza writes it in spades and I am minded that a nickel in the hand is always worth more than a dollar in the bush. :)

This strikes a chord.

boblakin

[James]

I'm glad you could take something away from this. Thanks.