Items Falling Off Shelves but the Peanut Butter with Jelly Gone

The ads and displays are everywhere
crowding entries and doorways.

There are even commercials on monitors—
I can’t escape.

I rush in for a few items and conversation
but choices offered seem bigger than life.

Signs that say save and save
implore that you spend more.

I pass by an aisle of more types
of bread than I could imagine

leading to a myriad of types
of peanut butter.

I must confess I couldn’t find
the peanut butter with jelly

that delighted my tongue
when I worked long, hot days

with construction crews
some other time and place.

Every small town I passed
nestled along narrow highways

had a name on a water tower
as it pierced the sky.

I long to go to a quiet place
and list my memories

a collage of the life
I’ve known.
Copyright © | Year Posted 2026

Poem

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Dietrich Avatar
January 26, 2026 at 12:07 AM
This is unusual. So you actually bought the peanut butter jelly already mixed. I have never done that. Joe complains if I don't buy Jiff or Skippy's !
Godwin Avatar
January 25, 2026 at 1:43 PM
What a transition from grocery shopping to reminiscing all sparked by the absence of peanut butter/jelly mix. To me, this is quite creative / unique. CayCay
Buhagiar Avatar
January 25, 2026 at 10:08 AM
We all yearn to find a quiet, peaceful place.
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