“Occitan Sonnet to a Dying Wage” by Caleb William Haines

Occitan Sonnet to a Dying Wage

When I consider our names forgotten:
We spent half of our days, working and beat.
When I consider, our time downtrodden:
In factories, fields, and blistering heat.
When I consider, we were not considered:
Our toil, our wear; unjust recompense,
When I consider, I am embittered:
The landlord is knocking, and asking for rent.
When we considered, the time we wasted:
Our parents were freed, not living at work
We considered, it’s time to face it:
We stare at the sun, fingernails full of dirt,
We considered, when living to make it.
Our wages reborn made our families first.