Francine Roberts Poet Rhyme

And This Is Why You Pay More

I can't get security's attention,
He's tackling some shoplifter outside.
I have a customer committing a fraud.
You can tell his brain is fried.

He hands me an eighty dollar item
With some sticker haphazardly placed.
Trying to convince me its forty,
With this silly, stoned look on his face.

I don't buy the innocent smile.
I go check it out for myself
And lo and behold there are others
All labelled for eighty on the shelf.

Of course he claims no knowledge
And out the door he shuffles.
In comes security with a handcuffed girl.
They had been in a bit of a scuffle.

A bag full of stuff was recovered
After the thief put up quite a fight.
My fraudster had sprinted across the lot,
Quickly disappearing from sight.

We had a couple hundred baskets 
With wheels, for customers to drag.
Handy they were and so loved.
"Don't take them outside" we would nag.

Well now the shoppers are peeved.
There are only three left in the store.
The rest have been stolen, disappeared,
And we won't see those anymore.

So, yes, prices continue to rise.
Everyone wants a deal
And some will do whatever it takes
Even if its lie, cheat and steal.

We have the police on speed dial.
They visit here every day.
We always have an idiot here
For them to take away.

The bad ones ruin it for the good.
We all pay for their crimes
And this is why costs go up.
Its just a sign of the times.

( for Kathie, because I said I would)

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Keith Bickerstaffe June 21, 2012 at 11:08 AM Excellent style and story development! To maintain rhyme and flow throughout TEN verses ain't easy... but you succeed brilliantly! Best wishes, Keith

Elizabeth Wesley May 30, 2012 at 4:33 PM Can't read it often enough!

Elizabeth Wesley April 6, 2012 at 3:25 PM Wow Francine, what a story, you must work in a store and see this all the time. It sure adds to the cost and we all pay for the selfishness of some. You tell it with such amazing rhyme, like it rolls off your pen effortlesssly. So glad you are enjoying my book, thanks for saying! :)

Carol Eastman February 8, 2012 at 9:28 AM Facinating and unique write... Very well done! Loved how you did it!

Joe Flach January 31, 2012 at 11:50 PM As a young man, working my way through college, I worked security at a K-Mart - amazing the things you see. Unfortanutely, lots of stuff was being pilferred by the employees. I didn't want to have to keep watch over the other employees, who were also college kids like me - so I moved on to other jobs. Liked this poem - nostalgic for me. Nicely told with great rhyme and meter.

Andrea Dietrich January 31, 2012 at 10:51 PM It's a very sad commentary on what our world has come to, Francine. You portrayed the whole thing very well with this tale of what happens in the store. WHich store is this where you work? I would feel so disheartened seeing this everyday.

Linda-Marie Sweetheart January 31, 2012 at 8:49 PM wow what a dilemma Francine.. so much of this goes on today everywhere.. u related the story so well with these profound lines.. what is happening to this old world my friend?

Robert Pettit January 31, 2012 at 8:38 PM Shoplifting is a serious crime. You have written about it well. It seems shoplifters don't always steal because of need. It seems like a sport and they get thrills out of doing it.