Just Words by Sarah Williams

He is drowning in a sea of words.

A language that will never belong to him:

hypothesis, photosynthesis, thesis – conform.

The teacher’s monotonous monotone voice drones on

as wave upon wave of words pummel towards him.

He catches the odd one or two,

but most pass by as he slowly drifts further out to sea.

 

He is drowning in a sea of words.

Lazy, rude, disrespectful: these are the words that he can comprehend.

Words that he can shrug off with a scowl, but have the power to brand him

for life.

 

He is drowning in a sea of words.

Across the classroom, he can see hundreds of synchronised pens filling blank pages.

Students who are eager to grasp, tame, capture the knowledge that the words contain.

 

Words that will allow them to swim through storms.

Words that will allow them to build a safe concrete wall.

Words that hold future promises: college, qualifications, university, wealth…

 

In front of him, his page remains blank.

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