My Wage

I bargained with Life for a penny, And Life would pay no more, However I begged at evening when I counted my scanty store.

For Life is a just employer, He gives you what you ask, But once you have set the wages, Why you must bear the task.

I worked for a menial’s hire, Only to learn dismayed, That any wage I had asked of Life, Life would have willingly paid

— Jessie B. Rittenhouse