P. 624
Schoolsville
Billy Collins
This is a humorous poem from the view of a teacher observing his former sudents. They all basically still live in the town where they grew up. He says the population ages but never graduates. He describes how some of the students acted in class and at school in general. He can't remember all their names in abc order, but can remember the things they did. The A's stroll with the other A's. The D's are red neck and carefree. It reminded me of the people I went to school with 27 years ago. Today I see alot of them around and about. I enjoy seeing what they have become. You know- like the girl who thought she was the most popular, the most beautiful girl in school. Stuck up you might say. Now she is fat and ugly. Or the boy that was the stud and is now bald and fat. You can look back and see why they are in the place they are today. Even working in elementary school teachers can tell what kind of person or what kind of life a kid will usually end having. I would love to know where all my former classmates are today. Some people never change.
I know all of us can appreciate this poem if we have been out of school for a few years. I would hate to hear what some of my teachers think of me.
Being a preschool teacher for 12 years I can relate to this poem. You do go through so many children and I myself have taught enough to "populate a small town."
ReplyDeleteYou do forget their names and the last names are the first to always go and then the first names come trailing behind. You remember the ones that stood out or made a special place in your heart.
Even in preschool I can tell what kind of high school kid the children will be. It's funny that our personalities shine even then. I have children that are so outgoing and make friends easily. Even in my two year old class there are the children that get left out and the children that try to leave them out.
The “A's strolling with the A's” is true evidence that you are the company you keep!