S&H Green Stamps

Every Friday after payday 

Mama'd take us to the store

With a grocery list she'd written 

And a little money, nothing more

She knew the price of every item 

Every nickel had a place 

And when the cashier handed her those stamps 

You should've seen her face

Those little green and white reminders 

That a dollar went a little more 

She'd tuck 'em in her pocketbook 

Before we headed out the door 

Back home she'd clear the kitchen table 

And bring that little booklet out 

We'd lick and stick those Green Stamps 

And see how many pages we could count

Oh, those S&H Green Stamps 

Little treasures made of paper

Mama saved 'em every week

For something special she'd get later 

A toaster or a coffee pot 

A little something for the home 

She made a whole lot out of nothing 

With those Green Stamps all her own

That catalog was full of treasures 

We'd turn the pages every night 

A shiny mixer for the kitchen 

A little bicycle I liked Mama had her eye on dishes 

Daddy wanted something for his tools 

But every time we filled another book 

We'd argue over what we'd choose

There was a place across from Main Street 

With a big green sign outside 

The S&H Redemption Center 

Where we'd go when the time was right 

Mama'd walk in with her booklets 

Like a queen with bags of gold 

And we'd watch her trade those little stamps 

For something she could finally hold

Oh, those S&H Green Stamps 

Little treasures made of paper 

Mama saved 'em every week 

For something special she'd get later 

A toaster or a coffee pot 

A little something for the home 

She made a whole lot out of nothing 

With those Green Stamps all her own

I remember one December 

When the money had been tight 

Mama brought home 

Christmas presents And hid 'em out of sight 

She'd saved those stamps since January 

Every little one she'd earned 

And somehow turned a year of groceries 

Into presents 'round the tree

We never knew how hard she worked 

To make those holidays feel grand 

We just thought Christmas came with magic 

And a little green stamp in her hand

Oh, those S&H Green Stamps 

I can see that kitchen table 

Mama licking little pieces

Just as fast as she was able 

Those books are gone, those stores have changed 

And time has carried on 

But I still see her sitting there 

Long after childhood's gone

Oh, those S&H Green Stamps 

They were worth more than we knew 

'Cause Mama wasn't saving paper

She was saving dreams for us, too

I found an old green booklet In a box the other day 

A couple pages still half empty 

And a stamp that came unstuck

I smiled and pressed it back in place 

Like Mama used to do

Funny how a little piece of paper 

Can bring your childhood back to you.