No Charge

My little girl came into the kitchen this evening,
While I was fixing supper,
And she handed me a piece of paper she'd been writing on,
And after wiping my hands on my apron,
I read it and this is what it said:

For mowing the yard five dollars,
And for making my own bed this week one dollar,
And for going to the store fifty cents,
An' playing with little sister, while you went to the store twenty-five cents,
Taking out the trash one dollar,
Getting a good report card five dollars,
And for raking the yard two dollars,
Total owed fourteen dollars and seventy-five cents.

Well, I looked at her standing there expectantly,
And a thousand mem'ries flashed through my mind,
So I picked up the pen, turning the paper over,
This is what I wrote:

For the nine months I carried you,
Growing inside me NO CHARGE,
For the nights I've sat up with you,
Doctored you, prayed for you NO CHARGE,
For the toys, food and clothes.
And for wiping your nose, there's NO CHARGE,
When you add it all up.
The full cost of my love is NO CHARGE.

Well, when she finished reading,
She had great big old tears in her eyes,
And she looked up at me and said,
"Mama, I sure do love you."
Then she took the pen,
And in great big letters,
She wrote: "PAID IN FULL."

When you add it all up,
The cost of real love is NO CHARGE