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Join Peter White Public Library in celebrating reading, literature, and the diverse people who make up our home in the Upper Peninsula.

March 20, 2025: Betty Harriman, "The Couch"

The Couch

by:  Betty Harriman

Long before she birthed me and my brother,
my mother made the decision to buy an old, frumpy couch.
She knew children loved to play and ruin furniture,
like little tornados flying through the house.
This mouse-brown couch saw many games of the-floor-is-lava,
as we jumped on it over and over, creating creases and tears.
It hid my skittish kitten that ripped and burrowed into it like a fluffy white termite.
Our couch watched movies with us and ate chips, crumbs, popcorn, and coins.
Old enough to be our parent, it was around to see me and my brother grow
from destructive little kids into teenagers... until it was sold away
to become a parent to some new crazy kids.



Betty Harriman is an 8th grader at Bothwell Middle School. She loves creating art,
visiting her family, and spending time with her friend, Ava.  She is a Yooper.

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