A poem for our time

 My daughter-in-law (who works in a school as do most of my family) sent me a copy of this poem:

T’was the week before half term and all through the land
The teachers were tired of washing their hands
Of cleaning the desks, and the drawers and the pens
Of reminding their class not to cuddle their friends
Of handgel and soap, of bleach and of wipes
Of passwords and google and all things that swipe
Of trying to stand at the length of a lion
From friends whose shoulders they wanted to cry on
T’was the week before half term and all through the land
The parents were trying to make up great plans
That don’t involve meeting, or greeting, or places
That in these strange times don’t resemble safe spaces
They look to the teachers, and all they have done
To make school inviting, inspiring and fun
To see past the problems, the issues and rules
To bring back the joy and excitement of school
Thank you being the safe place, the learning
For standing there strong with the children returning
For finding solutions that don’t feel so strange
With no funds or magicians to help you arrange
For stories and spellings and phonics and play
For taking the fear of this moment away.
October 2020