Our Tradition

Erin Jamieson

Our pennies sticky like

taffy from the carnival we met

when I still believed in miracles

in the form of slot machines that ate

and ate without giving, when your hands

were still smooth and my eyes still bright

​

No one pays with coins anymore, you or I say

but we’re too old to care or change

and we head down the corner

to the dollar store where we buy

Valentine’s card for each other

and yellow Peeps

​

We microwave the Peeps

when we get home,

letting them stretch and ooze

as we sip cheap wine

it’s all we have money for

now, but your hand still

fits neatly in mine

Erin Jamieson (she/her) holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Miami University. Her writing has been published in over eighty literary magazines, including a Pushcart Prize nomination. She is the author of a poetry collection (Clothesline, NiftyLit, Feb 2023). Her latest poetry chapbook, Fairytales, was published by Bottlecap Press. Twitter: @erin_simme