Resolutions

Resolutions for Read Write Poem
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Resolutions

“Why do we have to have New Year’s Resolutions, anyway?”
Trevor asks. “I’m not gonna follow them.”

I’m walking around the room during my Fundamentals class,
making sure they are using Word and not on MySpace,

a site that is blocked, but they know all the proxies.
These are bright kids but they have a learning disability

when it comes to English. I had this crazy idea
to have them make little credit-card sized cards with their

resolutions printed on them so they could keep them
in their wallets or tape them to their mirror or computer.

Death rock music crashes into my ear drums. It’s Scott.
“I didn’t do anything. Honest! I just hit this key by accident.”

I shake my head and he gets back to work. “How do you spell
resolutions?” Kristin wants to know. On my way to her desk

I tap Cory on the shoulder to direct him back from looking
at drum sets and make a twirling motion with my finger

at Shayna who is turned around flirting with Bill,
telling him all about her wild weekend, eyelashes fluttering.

“Can I make a resolution to hate guys?” Whitney has just been dumped
by her boyfriend and now he’s dating her best friend.

The girls all start dissing the guys and the guys give it
right back. I close my eyes, take a deep breath, raise my voice

and make my own resolutions: No more computers, No more
creative activities. “Ms. Jacobs, did you have a nice vacation?”

Eighteen eyes are looking at me, interested. I sit on an empty desk,
and start to talk. Shayna turns around. Cory forgets about his drums.

I hold their minds in the palm of my words, polish them, let them shine.
Later, “I’m still not gonna follow these resolutions” Trevor says, typing away.