poem analysis c)

One-Dollar Gambler

I have one dollar to bet on number 13
One dollar for a loaf of bread
With a piece of ham, sandwiched between two slices of tomato.
One dollar for a hot milk tea
Before work time starts.
One dollar for some paper and ink
And some knowledge for a blind man.
One dollar each morning,
One dollar each night and for each brick I laid.
But, I bet one dollar. The counter closed
The next day number 13 appeared
In the middle of my drowsy eyes
On top of my nose
Or somewhere in between the hollowness
Of my empty hands.
I now have zero dollars to bet
Zero dollars for bread, tea, paper, ink and bricks!
Zero dollars, again, for number 13.

by Phan Thi Nam Mai

Again this poem shows how you can lose everything you have or you can have in just one gamble. The author here shows that he has a dollar to spend on different things like a loaf of bread with ham and tomatoes, something that is really important to him. However, he loses that one dollar after gambling and is now left with nothing at all