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The Drug Store

Driving through a small mining town Angle parking in front of an old drug store Memories flashed back to my childhood Those days are gone forever more Sitting on a stool at the soda counter Large cherry coke for a dime The place had its own kind of smell A memory lost in time Hamburger was more than worth the price With a toasted bun and an onion slice A metal Coca Cola ad hanging on the wall For a nickel you could buy a red sponge ball Fountain soda tasted mighty good Floor was clean and it was made of wood Get a prescription filled and something to eat An ice cream soda was a special treat They had Squirrel Nut Zippers and Mary Janes Red hot dollars and candy canes Good n' Plenty and crackerjacks Magazines and paperbacks Baseball cards came with gum inside The owner flew our flag with pride I looked to the sky and heard myself say Lord, I'd trade all I own for yesterday.

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James Foulk

Date: 7/27/2008 4:26:00 PM

Hey let you and me build a time machine and go back there. i remember those days as i lot of my poems tell. i remember malts for 25 cents and comics for a dime and baseball cards for five cents. i really loved this one it was real good. thank you for reading my poems and for your comments.

Marycile Beer

Date: 7/16/2008 6:18:00 PM

You certainly have brought back a lot of memories this evening, Vince. I sometimes wonder what our children and grandchildren will remember when they get to my age. I have a lot of memories with them maybe that will be a part of their memories too. God Bless, Cile

Michael Jordan

Date: 7/11/2008 8:20:00 AM

Vince - this poem took me way back - those days are gone - You know we used to fight when we were kids but never heard of one classmate killing several others for no reason at all - fantastic poetry

Carrie Richards

Date: 7/9/2008 6:21:00 PM

Your memories of the "good ole' days" are so much like mine. Guess it comes with wisdom in our later years. I enjoyed this trip into the old drug store with you. Reminded me too, of the old 5 and 10 cent stores, that no longer exsit...they were all so wonderful and filled with such magic, especially for us as kids. Soda fountain treats......oh my...can taste them now! I'd trade all I own for simpler times, just as you said! Thanks for letting us take this trip with you!!!... Carrie

Joseph Spence Sr

Date: 6/14/2008 2:07:00 PM

This is certainly a trip down memory lane. I can see the images so clearly. This piece is really memory refreshing. The rhyming pattern gives the piece a special spark. I really like the last stanza the best. Great job! ~ Joseph

Marycile Beer

Date: 6/13/2008 8:55:00 PM

Vince, our Drug Store was call Fishers. It was just down the block from our grade school and we loved to go in there when ever mom had a reason. My you really went back. God Bless, Cile

Angela Crabtree

Date: 6/13/2008 2:53:00 PM

I love this, Vince. Where did Mary Jane have such accessibility? LOL You are very talented and your way of expressing your past with feelings of loss, is excellent combined with the marvelous flow. Love, Ivy

Ahellas Alixopulos

Date: 6/13/2008 10:22:00 AM

Hey, I've been there, the only thing I missed was the abbazabbas, but I do know that place, well done

Kristin Reynolds

Date: 6/12/2008 6:36:00 PM

Vince, my sweet friend, everytime I read one of your 'back in the day' poems, it really makes me wish I could go back in time just to know what that must have been like...it just sounds devine. I too, was reminded of back to the future! Grwat minds, john! A beautiful, vivid write, full of love for the good old days I never ever got to know...sigh...at least there's poetry like this...love ya man, Kristin XO

Crystal Seals

Date: 6/12/2008 5:07:00 PM

Hello Vince this poem was picture perfect and you are telling your age ha ha ha.Remembering the good ole days brings about a appreciation.Although I wasn't around for the hamburger being so cheap. I enjoyed your writtings. B BLESS Crystal

Sharon Winter

Date: 6/12/2008 4:25:00 PM

I can actually smell the bubble gum as I unwrap those game cards. Loved those cherry cokes and red hot dollars, and so much more. What an incredible write this is. Makes me want to go back too, in a desperate way. Sigh. Oh well. This is as close as we are going to get I guess. Thanks for the memories Vince. Love, Shar

Christy Hardy

Date: 6/12/2008 11:28:00 AM

Nothing was better back then than a trip to the corner drug store. I can still see the bar stools, the counter, and smell that yummy food, not to mention the real bananna splits, you know the ones with all the trimmings. Time is speeding up, and all the good things are going to be lost forever. Loved this write, your friend forever, Christy

Ronald Bingham

Date: 6/12/2008 9:56:00 AM

Vince, darned if that didn't nearly put a tear in my eye. I wished those days had never ended. Back then people earned everything they got and squeezed those pennies till they hollered. You never heard of ADHD and all the things that plague our youth these days. I wished my grandson could experience what life is to me suppose to be like, not play stations and tvs but getting outside with the gang, not the crypts either. Your friend Ron

Gary Jones

Date: 6/12/2008 9:49:00 AM

This poemreminds me of an old town I lived in during my youth. It was called, Red Bay, Alabama. It was almost exactly as you have so eloquently described here in this piece. Now, it is riddled with scumbags on crack and meth. My Mom still lives there. They way she describes it, everyone has gone insane. Great Write. Thanks for your comments. ~Gar

Michael Degenhardt

Date: 6/12/2008 9:05:00 AM

We had a place like that unti lthe mid 70s, then gone. First went the soda jerk, then the counter. I certainly miss those days too. great rhyme and the imagery brought me back as well. Michael