Poem of the Week: "Batteries" by Lee A. Tonouchi

I used to nag my Grandma

buy me toys, buy me toys.

And wenevah she bought me one,

Grandpa would go “Too much omocha.”

So raddah than get da scoldings

I used to colleck stuff

I found around da house, like

matchbook covers,

bottlecaps,

used stamps.

I even tried collecking rocks

but wuzn’t really

interesting to me.

My Grandpa kept saying I should

colleck leaves.

I tink he wuz trowing da hints like

he wanted me for help him

rake da yard.

Den one day

wen I wuz emptying da rubbish can

I found one used battery.

Wuz real diff ’rent

looking. Wuz deep blueand bronze color,

wit one cat drawing on top.

Da shiny metallic colors

wuz pretty trips.

My Mom toll my Dad

abunai,

dangerous if I start

collecking dat kine,

bumbye da acid leak

and might go insai my eye.

God gave us one perfect son

and now this is how we take care?

I wuz perfeck my Mom sed.

I tot she wuz perfeck too.

I wuz happy God gave her to me.

My Dad just rolled his eyes

cuz my Mom wuz always worrying about me.

So for make her happy, he toll me

wen brown stuff starts for come out

den das wen I had for trow ’em away.

Da brown stuff is acid, poison he sed.

But da only time I seen acid come out

wuz wen I leff

da flashlight on for like

couple yearsand so all da electricity wen go leak.

I figured

so long as

da battery

wuzn’t insai nothing

electricals

den nevah need werry.

Safe. Can keep ‘em forevah.

One day my Mom took me Shirokiya.

She wuz happy I nevah ask for one toy

in long time

so she sed I can have one

brand new battery,

anyone I wanted.

And Shirokiya had all da

colorful-kine kines from Japan.

Aftah we leff,

My Mom buckled me in my seat

and I put my new green battery

insai my giant nori container.

Me and my Mom wuz

jus driving back home

wen all of a sudden

we got bang from da side.

I seen my battery jar

buss open

and all my batteries

wen fly all ova da place.

My Mom wuzn’t moving.

She wuzn’t checking on me

for see if I wuz okay.

Planny people wuz looking at us

from on top da sidewalk.

And I seen

planny blood leaking

from my Mom.

So much blood

wuz coming out

I knew God wouldn’t

let me keep her

anymore.