0000649202
DETROIT FREE PRESS
081116
Sunday, November 16, 2008
METRO FINAL
1B
MITCH ALBOM
Free Press columnist
Copyright (c) 2008, Detroit Free Press
SOMETHING TO REMEMBER IN THESE HARD TIMES
Every day I have less
In my bank account.
Every day I grow scared
As my losses mount.
Every day there is less
To the house that I own
And the equity in it
Like the wind, has blown.
Every day I see less
On my bottom line.
Every day something worsens
That used to be fine.
Every day in my family
There's worry and stress.
Where we once dreamed of more
We now do with less.
Every day I hear stories
Of a company's worth
Sinking to levels
From before my birth.
And places I shopped
Are now closing their doors.
Big firms I grew up with
Are big firms no more.
Every day I have less
Of a once strong sensation
That the leaders we choose
Are good for our nation.
Every day I think less
Of a boss I respected
Who parachutes out
With his own butt protected.
Every day I see less
Of the country I knew
Of the dreams we encouraged
Under red, white and blue.
Instead I see signs
Of foreclosure and sale
And people afraid
Of what comes in the mail.
I see layoffs and cutbacks
No help for the needy
As billions are given
To the powered and greedy.
And this news, it is endless
It burrows so deep.
It shadows my waking
It's haunting my sleep.
Yet every day I have less
I cannot ignore it.
Something grows clearer
That wasn't before it.
If I still have a job
I am luckier than some.
If I still have my house
It is better than none.
If I still have my wits
There are mouths I can feed.
If I still have my family
What more do I need?
If I still have my health
I am mercifully blessed.
If I think I have little
Someone has less.
Every day I discover
More mercy in me.
Every day I find out
Who my true friends will be.
Every day that I stumble
Or say, "I can't do it!"
Is a day I discover
With God's grace, I get through it.
So I learn a new lesson
If I keep a new score
That every day I have less
May be a day I have more.
Contact MITCH ALBOM at 313-223-4581 or malbom@freepress.com. Catch "The Mitch Albom Show" 5-7 p.m. weekdays on WJR-AM (760). Also catch "Monday Sports Albom" 7-8 p.m. Mondays on WJR. Read his recent columns at www.freep.com/mitch.
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