CLASS 3 PRINTING FEE (by Oppong Clifford Benjamin) (Please Help promote # Poetry by LIKING our page) He stood in a tired uniform well ironed and tucked And his shorts fusiform Today was exams day and he couldnt wait to write He walked to him Mum for the usual morning blessings She tried to tell him that he probably should stay home He bowed his head and she threw her eyes away They both knew why... why it was best to stay But he knew what to say... What to tell his teachers cane and his mates who might laugh again Of why he will write but cant pay His Mother knew it would be another day when her second child Will end education and chase after life around the traffic light She sensed the aroma of history repeating itself today And tried harder to keep him at home But the little boy went to school Ready to tell all about why he will write but cant pay They were many kids seated in arranged rows and columns He saw the blank desk. It was Obvious Kweku wouldnt come One by one, the teacher inspected their printing-fee receipts Some showed a full year, others for the term... And he sat there, hoping to do magic At last the teacher got to his desk Every child was watching with their faces covered with laughs It was an old story: he would be thrown out again “Show me your receipt”, the Teacher requested “If you dont have go home”, a boy retorted “No printing fee, no paper”, another dared to shout ...And now, they all teased I’m sorry you will have to go home said the Teacher He stood up, opened his mouth as if to cry then shut it Go on, do you have anything to say? Teacher urged In tears, he closed his eyes, clapped both palms together And like a humble prayer, he said: I dont want to be like Kwabena, my elder brother Who lost his education a day like this His daily bread is now oven by the red light on the street” “I dont want my mother to keep wishing for graduates Yet crying to for the fact that she cant afford one I dont want any of my mates here think me dumb Because I have not the chance to prove myself” “Dont talk of my father, he is long resting and heaven is far away He too had a task for me: “Become an engineer!” Please Sir, Allow me education and one day we both wont regret” This minute, you are deleting a future This minute, you can create a destiny This minute break the rules to make an engineer and Heaven will smile. This is my humble plea He opened his eyes to his ultimate dismay every eye was flooding The teary teacher apologized and promised him his help Later at home, his Mum, took the exams question paper In a gentle voice, she asked, “how did you do it?” Now he is a civil engineering student An award winning poet ...and the author of this particular piece Written by: Oppong Clifford Benjamin Edited by: Kukogho Iruesiri Samson
Posted on: Tue, 09 Sep 2014 07:47:57 +0000
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