The day the lunch ladies went on strike
Was the beginning of a long hike
That set the teens up for the rest of life.

Little Wendy lost her only meal
And with only so much to steal
She got a picture of how hunger feels.

Couldn’t even find a slice of bread
Didn’t take long to learn open legs get fed
Began to trust every word the pimp said

He taught her to escape the pain
By sticking needles in her veins.
The innocent became inhumane.

As she grew, she began to know
Where she’d land as a hoe
But it wasn’t enough for her to let go

Until her pregnancy struck a chord.
She made a promise in the maternity ward
To change when they snipped the umbilical cord.

Five custodians took off that day,
Scheduled a time to play.
The rest is very hard to say.

A nervous six year old puked in the hall.
While the only janitor cleaned a bathroom stall
And the nurse began to call

“This baby won’t make it out at all!”
The doctor rushed, but couldn’t catch her fall.
Wendy’s child never got a chance to crawl.

Wendy couldn’t help but cry.
It should have been her to die.
So she went back to getting high.

The day the lunch ladies went on strike
Was the beginning of a long hike
That began the ride of life.

A woman sped up to where they stood
And slammed on the breaks as hard as she could.
No strikers were hurt, but she wasn’t good.

Billy the tough guy lost his mom that day.
In his mind, the picketers got their way,
All over a dollar’s pay.

When Billy found out, he was no longer tough.
This had to be a horrible bluff.
He got to the scene. This was real stuff.

Billy’s family decided to sue.
They took it to court for judicial review.
The jury’s verdict was far from true.

It was ruled as nothing but an accident.
For Billy this was inadequate.
So he found a way to never quit.

For those strikers he felt no remorse.
In less than a year, joined the police force
For him, this was just a matter of course.

The day the lunch ladies went on strike
Was the beginning of a long hike
That set them up for the rest of life.

Little Lindsay’s mom was not around.
She always worked out of town.
So Lindsay cooked what she found.

Luckily, Lindsay’s mom was rich
So she could make whatever she wished.
All alone she cooked shellfish.

Without parents, she had no clue
And with the fish her throat grew,
So, she made her hospital debut.

The doctor asked for an explanation.
Lindsay responded with frustration,
“I don’t know. My mom’s on vacation!”

Lindsay overheard a nurse
Say “CPS is the worst!”
Goddamn shellfish is a curse.

Lindsay was sent away that day.
Her entire world was turning grey.
Without delay, she ran away.

They got hold of her mom on the phone.
“My daughter’s fine on her own
She’s seventeen that’s fully grown!”

“Listen, ma’am, you’ve got a lot to lose.
No matter how hard—you have to choose.
It’s either your daughter or your cruise.”

All the while, Lindsay roamed
Struggling to find a home,
Searched for a job up and down Jerome

Until she met a man named Ben
Who asked if she’d like to bartend.
It was just enough to pay the rent.

The day the lunch ladies went on strike
Was the beginning of a long hike
That began the ride of life.

Years went by, but the effects were lasting
Some of them may call for gasping,
While others far from needing masking.

Surprisingly, Wendy’s still alive
Trying hard to survive,
But from bad habits has yet to revive.

Billy’s now the chief of police
Trying hard to keep the peace.
Married a doctor named Denise

Lindsay’s now a great bartender
Trying hard to convey splendor
To get big tips from big spenders.

But she fell into bad habits too
A lot of drug dealers in her crew
From just alcohol, her selling grew.

Today the three will be together,
All facing major pressure
With no idea whatsoever

Of the strike that caused their connection.
Wendy just wants her injection
While Lindsay wants her collection.

Billy and Denise go out on a date
She notices a girl who’s way underweight
The girl turns, changing Denise’s state.

Denise would never forget who she was
She’s tried so many times but still never does.
The girl lost her child. Denise was the cause.

The second Billy turns around
He sees a bag drop to the ground
Says, “That’s a drug deal—hands down.”

“Can’t you just forget about work?
You’re constantly acting like a jerk!”
But Billy can’t help it. He needs to lurk.

He gets up to head outside,
But doesn’t make it before he is eyed
Wendy and Lindsay begin to stride.

“Who was that?” asks Lindsay.
“The fuckin’ chief of NYPD!”
The girls run like dogs from fleas.

Denise follows Billy, begging him to let it go,
But he will not stop and she is too slow.
A tear falls from her eyes. What a low blow!

Wendy’s pimp and gang wait down the block
In case the girl’s are in need of a flock.
He sees them run and pulls out a glock.

The day the lunch ladies went on strike
Was the beginning of a long hike
That set them up for this night.