The Anomalous Pupil

The Anomalous Pupil

The last time I saw her,
She stood apart from us:
The one and only anomalous pupil,
Cross-eyed, stupid-faced smiler
That she was--

She had a grotesquely poor memory,
Awful syntax, worrying spelling
(as our teacher Mrs. Simone put it),
And yet, she danced well,
Tapping her feet in perfect sync
With music--

I think of her at times,
She appears on my mental canvas
like a breath-taking sunset,
Mellow and enchanting,
Quiet and interesting
That she was--

She laughed crookedly,
She spoke terribly and ate sloppily
(it was such a funny sight to behold)
And yet, when she walked into class,
Everyone paused and looked at her with awe
and pleasure--

She dropped out in a few months,
A victim of strange policies-
Where academic brilliance and intellect rule,
And shyness and meekness are pushed aside
At the altar of education.

The last time I saw her,
I kissed her good-bye,
She went with tears on her anguished face,
But the smile never did waver,
Ugly, yet beautiful.

© Dr. Taher Kagalwala 2004

Prompt: Write a poem beginning with "The last time I saw him/her ..."

Written for:

SLAM!  (18+) Spring 2006 SLAM! - Congrats to the winners - see you all next time! #554585 by Cappucine