In elementary school
we were marched
in orderly lines
to the cafeteria.
Waiting patiently,
we eyed the school nurse
who bore a tray of
pristine white sugar cubes,
neatly arranged in rows.
Each perfectly formed square
held at its center
three drops
of a medical miracle.
To us children,
the sugar cubes
were a sweet treat,
a distraction from
everyday lessons.
To the adults,
the grainy, porous squares
promised hope.
Hope to avoid
the crippling effects
of polio,
a disease that left
my grandfather with
weakened legs, cramped fingers.
Hope that each tiny cube
brought steady, easy breathing
outside the grasp
of an iron lung.
I will always remember fondly
the distraction,
the communal gathering
of children sucking happily
on the sweetness
that masked progress
in a cube.
A Reading Life 
Thank you for the reminder of how much simpler life was back then.
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Wow! This poem was not only beautiful but a history lesson in disguise. The last line is so poignant! Thank you.
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Totally agree about the history lesson masked in this memory slice that sings through careful craft and symbolism. I have goosebumps!
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Not sure how I posted anonymously, but wanted to also add that this gave off a dystopian feel.
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I enjoyed this history lesson in a poem, and an appropriate one for our current times.
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Wow! What a poem and an important history lesson. I don’t remember the sugar cubes but I do have the polio vaccine scar. A miracle!!
A reminder there was a time when hope was all we had–before vaccines and treatments were our safeguards.
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I don’t remember getting them at school, but remember standing in line with my family to get the sugar cubes at the high school in our community. I didn’t understand the fear my parents felt, but knew it was important. You’ve captured this event so well.
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