Scott Simpson · Poetry

Middle School Is a Lie

Use For Kindling · source pages 15, 16

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Source page 15

The lie is:

you must become like everyone else

to be liked.

So we shrink.

We swap out quirks

for whatever fits.

We learn the rules of cool

and keep our real selves

in the back pocket of a hoodie.

And if a teacher notices—

really notices—

what’s tucked away,

they have two choices:

Ignore it.

Or name it gently,

as something good.

Source page 16

There’s a quiet kind of teaching

that doesn’t feel like teaching—

just a raised eyebrow,

a knowing nod,

a question asked twice.

Those are the moments

when a kid

might unzip the hoodie

and say,

“This is me.

Still weird.

Still here.”