Sunday, December 16, 2007

Ode to An F.

Earth drinks autumn rains;
My carpet accepts your tears:
Dripping, dropping, drop.

As the cottonwood
Beside the rain-swollen stream
Unmovèd am I.

Late work; incomplete;
Poor attendance; excuses.
And now, you're weeping.

Grades do not measure
Good intentions or talent:
Only performance.

Birds not migrating
Get caught in the winter's snow:
So your work falls short.

A "D" is sixty.
You gave a push at the end:
Fifty-eight point eight.

If you were a bird
You might have reached freezing rain:
You would not be warm.

"It's only one point!"
"No, my dear, it's one point two.
"Take your bitter herb.

Fall turns to winter;
Seasons change; college terms end:
Too little, too late.

Unmovèd am I
Beside the rain-swollen stream
As the cottonwood.

Dripping, dropping, drop;
My carpet accepts your tears:
Earth drinks autumn rains.