Put me in a matrix multiplied by the objects of life

2 bitten pencils, no eraser, sign of strife

Trainwreck identity, not a housewife

Dishwasher suds, no spoons, I eat off a knife

 

Or maybe that’s just a teenage girl, transpose

I was told to start with this proof, propose

Only crumpled up my sheet, dispose

One way to the truth, reduce my rows

 

My biggest fear is that everything cancels out

The sweet promise of numbers, without a doubt

Neat rows of whole ones, what life is about

But face the echelon, and watch the fallout

 

I do wish my values lined up with yours

But I offer rows, columns of zeroes

In a square fairytale, there aren’t heroes

Lay me to rest, remember, you chose

 

Sad results of the binary DTF game

I want you to come over. Please. Begging is lame.

I’ve heard it turns some people on, so they came

But there’s a thin line between risk and shame

 

But I’m starting this test without any foundation

I just need to get something down, desperation

Hear my plea for partial credit, consternation

A mathematic education that’s failing our nation

 

I’m staring at a page of problems I can’t untangle

I can’t get my first hook, but the numbers dangle

They whisper of neat answers at certain angles

With enough preparation, I’m sure I could wrangle

 

An A, I want to be more than I see, find a remedy

Can I breathe? I’m finding it hard to believe

That even when I grieve, fatigued and naive,

That I’ll be granted reprieve, heart on my sleeve,

Waiting to succeed, love guaranteed, I’m feeling deceived

If this is a numbers game, I’m taking my leave.

by: Mallika Madhusudan