In That Little Eight by Ten

She was twenty-two and nervous as rain Looking for something steady and plain Found her place on a narrow street Where family roots ran strong and deep Eight by ten with a window crank Dusty sunlight, walls plain and blank One door left and one door right To the husband and wife who ran the site She works in that eight by ten Watching years roll by again Two doors open and the day begins Paper trails and ledger pins Doesn’t love it, doesn’t complain Just steady as a southbound train A quiet life in a quiet lane In that little eight by ten A third door where workers sometimes came Sometimes smilin' or sometimes complain Three bright screens glow in blue Telling her what the numbers do Invoices stacked in tidy lines Coffee rings and overtime They’ve treated her fair these twenty-five Kept her steady, kept her alive She works in that eight by ten Watched their business grow and thin Watched new hires come and then Leave that little office again Doesn’t love it, doesn’t resent It’s where her working years were spent Time moves slow but it’s well-meant In that little eight by ten No retirement tucked away No golden years already paid Just faithful days in fluorescent light And locking up each night Now she’s nearing forty-nine Still hears that printer’s steady whine Doesn’t know how long she’ll stay But knows she'll be here come Monday Not quitting yet, not counting down Still part of that small-town sound Just living life in measured scenes In that office in between She works in that eight by ten Through the loss and through the wins Not chasing glory now and then Just keeping books and tying loose ends Doesn’t love it, doesn’t complain But there’s a kind of quiet gain In simple days that still remain In that little eight by ten Sun through glass at closing time Another year gone down the line