Just A Boy

Trying to refrain from falling tear drops
The boy laid in his bed at night counting stars
The pillows were drenched with love and pain
Lined with satin, imprinted with tractors and cars

From since he was a young child at heart
He shared what seemed to be a common dream
To grow up and be a cowboy on the farm
Here in Alabama, living out his wildest of themes

The odds were seemingly impossible for him
His dreams were something that stars queried
But he had the determination to conquer all
In time, he would seem to defeat impossibles fury

He came from a dirt poor family you could say
Mother worked at a factory for nickel and dime
Daddy was nowhere to be found growing up
But Ma' always did her best to raise him in time

She worked her fingers to the bone everyday
Slaving under the steaming structure of steel
She never treated herself to the good things in life
All that ever mattered was bringing home a meal

A can of vegetables here and there got them through
The thought of it alone still makes me want to cry
How people rejected them from society, from help
I just couldn't imagine how the two ever got by

At night they slept on an old matress together
Box springs were something they couldn't afford
But Each night before they slept they'd pray to God
And thank him for the little things most people ignored

Somehow time went on for the Mother and Son
She grew to be an old lady and one day retired
Suffers from back pains, and severe legs injuries
I'm sure it wasn't exactly the life she'd desired

Actually,I spoke to her myself not too long ago
With tears in my eyes, I asked the old feeble woman
"What was your inspiration to keep pushing on?"
With a smile on her face, this exact story begun...

You may wonder what happened to the young boy
His dreams and hopes, did they ever come true?
Let's just say he realized what was important in life
He grew up to be a poet, writing poems about life to you
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© D. Lewonczyk
One of the greatest lessons in life I'll ever learn...

P.S. This is a summary of the original poem I wrote - the original has many more details but I know some people don't like reading really long poems. Thanks for taking the time to read.