National Poetry Month

April has been is National Poetry Month. A couple of my dear friends have been writing awesome poetry in celebration. I've been so caught up doing the 30-Day Challenge that I didn't want to do anything else until it was finished.

Now that it's over, I've decided to try my hand at a bit of creative writing in honour of the month. My friends' writings are far superior, but I wanted to try. Below is a sestina about education, a topic I have very frustrated feelings about... I hope you like it.

"Education"

I have always wanted to be a teacher;

It forever seemed like a righteous passion.

It has never appeared to be a bore.

I dreamed I’d be a teach who made the grade,

Teaching lessons, well-liked by ev’ry student.

I wanted to inspire them to learn.

I went to college so that I could learn

What I must do to be a great teacher:

Learn how to handle that troubled student,

Help them kindle that academic passion,

To aid their quest to earn a decent grade,

And make lessons that are not a huge bore.

With ‘thusiasm of a tidal bore,

I wanted to destroy every student

Great fear and weaknesses, like the poor grade

Levies in a storm. They would say, “Teacher

Has got knowledge and serious passion.

I am glad I am his (or her) student.”

Instead, in my classroom there’s a student

Miming drilling a large rotary bore

Into his head. Annulled is my passion

As I realise students don’t want to learn.

They don’t even see me as a teacher,

But an adult who gives a letter grade.

Now government thinks they need to degrade

My job educating, because student

Failure is all the fault of the teacher.

The old saying goes, “You can lead a bore

To water but you cannot make it learn.”

Maybe? Idioms were not my passion.

The bleak state of affairs erodes passion,

In its place there are ineffective grade

For teachers who cannot force kids to learn.

Now charter schools, they will save the student,

Even though apathy still leads to bore.

So why would anyone be a teacher?

I still force passion for every student—

Despite their grade and thinking I’m a bore—

I long to learn to be a great teacher.