I am sorry for today.

I told you to complete the self-evaluation
you wrote “low,”
and I didn’t stop you.

No child should be allowed to do this to themselves.

Can I say I didn’t know?
That I come from afar?
The image of you stamped with a mark from your early years,
carrying this on your shoulders and running behind it —
this image is alien to me.

Expected grade, above target, below target.
Vol’s too high, low conviction, small size.
The sorcery of swaps and assets.
The future colonised. A liability.
Class system in a classroom.

I saw you the other day at the skate park,
and you looked different.
You waved at me and told me to watch.

You took your skate and did spins and turns.
And the question I have for you is:

How does the world look when you spin?

The next day I told you I understand why you can’t stand still.
And I promised you we ‘ll finish your wooden toy,
and you will take it home.

At least I did that,
did I?