It was the crumpled up brown bag that made me think of it 

Lying there on the counter 

Brown paper bags could make one covet 

Anne Lamott said to write about school lunches 

So here I am 

As a child, none of the ones I encountered were repugnant

Peanut butter and grape jelly on white bread 

Cheese-Its 

Samantha once opened up her lunch box and said

“Instead of five or six cookies, my mom gave me this”

And she held up a fruit roll-up 

Those red, artificially flavored yo-yos were delicious 

As were my mom’s ham sandwiches on white bread with mayo 

Some kids had rolls of Oreos 

Rolls of Ritz crackers 

Ziploc bags full of Goldfish

The delights of snackers 

“Real meals” were often Lunchables 

Over this none of us kids grumbled 

Otis Spunkmyer cookies were a thing for a while 

They could help a high school kid through any trial 

Looking back, I don’t remember any vegetables 

Joshua would eat Cinnamon Toast Crunch 

Poured into his shallow, plastic, rectangular dish 

Then the milk 

Who says you can’t eat breakfast for lunch?

There was the occasional apple or banana 

Like Paul from Alabama – if he ate with us 

He had steak and chicken 

His home-cooked meals were a daily given

As an adult I realize that the most nutritious foods 

Are the ones for which a brown paper bag could never do 

Now my lunch box is insulated 

And I’ve got ice blocks to keep my food from being wasted 

If it can sit on a shelf or in a brown paper bag 

Odds are it’s a drag 

I wouldn’t feed my kid what I grew up eating (save maybe the PB&Js)

All the junk food is quite deceiving 

I think I’ll pack her an insulated lunch early on 

Because fruits and veggies and proteins are paramount 

I sort of hope she never finds out – about all the junk: Pop Tarts and crackers and Dunkaroos 

I want her to experience real food

From a pretty, sturdy tote 

She’ll get all the nutrients, I hope 

From home-cooked meals and love

And tangible friends rather than social media

A sweet potato or bananas rather than Stevia 

Maybe we can revitalize school lunches 

Reduce the waste

Nourish growing bodies

And even bring back the face-to-face

Of eating at the table with friends 

Like when there was no Facebook or MySpace 

RIP brown paper bag lunches