The problem isn’t teachers.

for Heather, and so, so many more

The gritty nasty easy complaints take root
even when we try to weed them out.
The problem isn’t teachers. It isn’t you,

not if you’re teaching, it’s sure not.
We know what it’s all about
when gritty nasty easy complaints take root

in public discourse. Money is the root,
the square root, when we hear how
the problem is teachers. It isn’t you,

no, not you, rich man, you tell the truth
about those lazy public employees. Shout
those gritty nasty easy complaints! The root

is poverty, and unearned self-esteem, and too,
too much testing and less learning, but
the problem isn’t teachers. It isn’t you

my friend, my hero, my diligent compatriot.
Teaching well is about telling the truth.
Gritty nasty easy complaints may take root,
but the problem isn’t teachers. It isn’t you.

If I’d made one bale every semester I taught….