Tuesday, August 23, 2016

One Meeting Too Many

The coffee pot,
Humbly splattered,
On the wheeled cart in the library
Bears witness to the harried start of the day.
The plastic prong,
On one side of the lid,
Has come unhinged.
We empathize;
But no one takes time to fix it.
We are quick to take seats
at the back tables
Wrapping cold hands
around warm mugs
In air conditioning that works too well today
And not at all tomorrow,
Scrabbling for a loose pen
in the bottom of a book bag,
Pretending to take notes
While making to do lists:
-Turn in lunch forms
- Order electric sharpener
- Put in work order for locker #17...
Sometimes
The only sweet thing
About a mandated morning meeting
Robbing precious minutes
Reviewing old news
We know by heart
Is the jelly donut
Sawed in half
With a plastic knife
That wasn't really cut out for the job
Or even up to the challenge
But showed up anyway
A flimsy plastic miracle.
Proving once again,
The littlest things can make a difference.


7 comments:

  1. Lori, back to school meetings are a necessity so staying positive is a way to get through what seems to be boring. Enjoy your year even the one too many meetings.

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  2. How well I remember those in service meetings that drones on and on with repeated information that we all knew while my mind wandered to what I needed to do in my room to get it ready for my students. This is one thing I do not miss.

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  3. How well I remember those in service meetings that drones on and on with repeated information that we all knew while my mind wandered to what I needed to do in my room to get it ready for my students. This is one thing I do not miss.

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  4. Oh, I love your flimsy plastic miracle showing up to the challenge. Mandated morning meetings, we've all been there. Loved this line - "We are quick to take seats at the back tables."

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  5. LOVE the language here! You're funny! I'm sorry you had an unproductive morning meeting. Hopefully you'll be ok as the school year moves along! Have a good one! And have a cup of coffee for me! (Jennifer Sniadecki)

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  6. Oh, you speak the truth! I think I've experienced every bit of this. Why is it the air conditioner never works when the kids are there, but always freezes one out during the meetings. Hope the year will be great!

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  7. Unhinged, indeed. And I could picture that archetypal jelly donut. Thanks for finding the wry chuckles amid this detritus, Lori.

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