Only Two

2021 3rd & 4th Grade Poetry Winner

Worry.
Seeping into my life
like clams
sinking into the sand.
The storm
was so determined
and fierce
that I doubted whether I would see
the imprisoned lightning.

My husband,
Philip,
and I
boarded a boat
where the storm of worry
and fear
continued even at the bottom.
We navigated through the crowds.
Up the ramp.
Down the stairs.
Down.
Down.

Down.
Down.
I reached into my pocket.
Two small coins
and my handkerchief.
I rolled the coins
between my fingers.
Hope.

The noise and discomfort
at the bottom of the boat
was unbearable.
I could never feel safe
on the rickety beds.
I seldom talked
to strangers
on the boat
for fear that they
were criminals.
I worried that the boat would get lost in the crashing sea.
I worried that the boat would sink
down
to the bottom of the deep ocean.

I worried that I would always be
tired
poor
and yearning to breathe free.
I wondered how I could start a new
life
with two coins.
Only two.

At last
we can leave the bottom floor
and venture to the top deck
to see the Statue of Liberty
and our new home.
Philip and I cried so many tears of joy
that the world could have flooded unless we stopped
when security guards declared
that it was time to leave the boat.
We pushed our way through the crowds.
A big house.
A room where a doctor took our temperature.
A room where a security guard examined our belongings:
one handkerchief; two coins; and a small, fading book of pictures.

A room where we were given food.
A room where a man with a clipboard and pencil paced
back and forth,
looking at us
and then at his clipboard.
He turned to us
and announced
that we
were ready to go.
An old woman picked us up in a car
and took us to The Bronx.
She was paid
by the government
to let us live in her home
until we had our own place to live.

We later found an apartment,
Philip worked as a taxi driver,
and I had three girls:
Bessie, Fannie, and Sophie.
Little did I know that Bessie
would have a son
who would have a daughter

who would have a daughter
who would write this story
about Philip and I
immigrating
to New York City
from Russia.
With only two coins.