Aaron's Antiques Poem by Donal Mahoney

Aaron loves the show
on television about antiques.
Tonight they have a Grecian vase
worth close to a million dollars.
Aaron has stuff in the basement
but his wife says no antiques.
He decides to see if she is right.

He finds boxes of books he read
years ago in college, sepia
photos of ancestors, letters from
students written to thank him
for teaching them how to read.

Behind the boiler more boxes
of stuff worth millions to him
but nothing to anyone else.
He goes upstairs and tells his wife
it's okay to put his boxes out
with the garbage after he dies.
But she should keep his thesis.
Some day a publisher might want it.
They've had copies for 50 years.