school blues

the essay I so enjoyed writing
failed to make the grade
"the oldest mistake in the book", he said.

and I´m left with a mirror
to write teaching reflections on
but after everything I see
am I really so dumb?

No pain, no gain, they say
as they convince us
our students need chill-out grooves
and a friendly, safe cocoon

for us a bed of sharpened pencils
a pillow made of books
paperclips grip our eyelids
information overload

when is a student not a student?
or is it just professional contempt?