Thrift Store Thank You

My favorite coat cost 9 bucks
I wear flannels every season
I can’t remember buying a shirt for more than 5$ since 7th grade
I think shoes are the most important part of an outfit
The last time my mom could afford to buy me an outfit was bc of her student loans
I don’t think there’s one item in my closet that wasn't a hand me down

or something I bought for myself

In other words everything I wear means something to me
In other words every time I walk outside in the winter I thank god

that 10 dollars kept me warm
In other words I don’t know how I survived 8th grade

in my garage sale graphic tees and knock off converse-

I know all the kids in my middle school could tell the difference

What I’m trying to say is when your poor you feel different
Some days I wish my mom got a bachelor's degree & a good job

but most days I’m just glad she tired
She is the reason I wear my college ID like a favorite shirt
every part of me that values education was a hand me down

or something I bought for myself

My mother flunked out of her freshman year in college
When I was a teenager she went back to school to get her AA
she is the reason after I failed I retook algebra 2
And the second time around passed with an A

Us Johnson women don’t know much about math

but we do know how to put ourselves back together
What I’m trying to say is everything I know about not giving up

was handed down from my mother
everyday that I want to dropout of school I think of my mommas sacrifice
When I graduate from college I will wear my mom’s pride like it’s a favorite tee shirt
I will laugh with my gap, that is such a second hand smile
This poem is a thrift shop thank you

to the woman who taught me all the things you cannot buy.