Welcome to Cozy Poetry Corner by Debra A Winter (Richter)

Billy’s Plumbing Business is Lost!

Rain was falling hard, Billy’s yard flooded — what could he do?

The phone kept ringing; people were saying they were flooded, too.

It was a scary evening with so many calls for Billy and his crew.

Basements were filling fast — they needed help, but what could they do?

Sump pumps failed; the water was simply too much.

Billy saw a man standing in waist‑high water, leaning on a crutch.

He dispatched a few of his crew to try to help where they could,

but the water rose too quickly — all they heard was a dog yelp in the neighborhood.

People waded in waist‑deep water outside their homes,

and with the roaring flood around them, you couldn’t even hear their groans.

House after house was swallowed by water; debris floated down the road.

Billy’s own plumbing business was waterlogged, his tools drifting by — a soggy a la mode.

He’d never cried before today,

but he was counting on that business to pay for the baby’s birthday.

Almost everything was lost — his business, his crew, his customers, too.

All flooded out or swept away… now what could they do?

One day at a time, he prays to God — for He knows all,

once the rising waters start to fall.

Billy said, “My baby will be born in a day or two,

and I’ll have my wife and child, so I won’t stay blue.”

“We’ll pick up the pieces and go from there,

step by step, with a whole lot of care.”

We’ll just try to pick up the pieces and go from there,

I’ll have to do it with a lot of care.

For we never know what’s in store for us tomorrow,

For our time was given to us, only to borrow.