“Apartment Like a Shoebox”
By Helena Maffei

Apartment like a shoebox,
One bedroom, four people.
Father, mother, sister, brother,
In a brownstone by the park.

Apartment like a bookshelf,
Things crammed into each corner.
The couch, chairs and piano
All doubling as shelves.

Apartment like a birdhouse,
A haven in the city where
With nothing but two duffel bags
My parents made their nest.

Apartment like a desk drawer,
Small but filled with tools
That helped two children grow.
Someday soon we’ll outgrow home.

Read all WSR Poetry Corner poems here.