Lawrence Hall
Mhall46184@aol.com  
https://hellopoetry.com/lawrence-hall/
poeticdrivel.blogspot.com

                             The Age of the Clear Plastic Backpack

My school bag was an old Boy Scout knapsack
And in Indo-China I carried my kit
In canvas made in 1944
And on canvas we carried away the dead

As a civilian I carried a briefcase for a time
But a briefcase is like a narrow tie
They both show up on old-movie night
Just right for Tony Randall in the 1950s

I’m back to canvas, but now they make the kids
Carry clear plastic in our war against ourselves