Final

Pencil across yellow paper
lined, helping me keep straight
all that I had hopefully learned
this semester.

Answers coming slowly, then faster…
clock staying the same
coffee slowly drained, shooting more lead
into the pencil, as it moves on, and on.

Soon, moving through the questions
the pile of yellow deeper, my confidence
builds, and I tackle the hardest
question.

Time nearly up, I look around
and am nearly alone—
My colleagues this past thirteen weeks
left early, hopefully wrote smart
and more succinct.

The staple pushes through all of my thoughts
of the semester, all that stayed in my brain
in this room, every Monday morning,
and all that came from my books
now growing unread again
in the back of my car.

The cold rain falls hard
and I am done with thinking today…
headed for a beer and a hearty long lunch
and vacation --- next Monday
unplanned, unstudied, not
final.

12/09