He Gave Her a Book
Elsie* was poor, a little fourth-grade girl--
It was clear she was underprivileged, as
Her hair was unkempt, with never a curl,
And her clothes were frequently unclean
A local preacher came to her room and told
Her a story that happened so very long ago;
Gave her a book called the New Testament,
It was like he had given her tablets of gold
Treasuring that book, the only one she had,
She read parts of it every day, just like he said,
Until she found a special verse, John 3:16,
And that small book changed her life forever.
Elsie kept in her heart as much as she could
Each day reading verses from her precious book,
When she did not return for fifth grade I learned
She died of cancer; her NT from her hands they took.
This story is true, so many years ago
When Gideons were allowed to hand
One to each child in the fourth-grade class, so
Then, something changed throughout our land.
[*This is the true story of a little girl named Debbie
who never made it to my fifth-grade class.]
written May 15, 2021
for "He Gave Her a Book" Poetry Contest
sponsored by Mystic Rose Rose
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