Handheld Teacher

 

 

No degree

No lessons

Exams

Sharpened pencils,

But books do sit among the best 

Teachers

 

Lee hands each character a torch.

We follow their lead

Charging against the plot page by page

Slashing through tall, weeded tension

Overgrown gender norms

Rotted racism speckled among the ink

Mastering Maycomb mysteries.

They lead.

 

Rumors of superior narration from one not in ink

Disproved

By Scout as we see through her view

Inviting us to join as she 

Charges page by page

 

And the best besides Lee

Tell not only of their story,

But of worldly happenings

Off the page

Of history’s plot

Its fires, storms, and sunrises

Binding all among its binding

 

Thankful for the lessons

For this handheld teacher.