The University Student Bids Farewell to Her Professors

A response to a poem called The Correspondence Instructor Says Goodbye to His Poetry Students, by Galway Kinnell.

See you around Human Geography Professor. Let's see now,

What had we discussed? You spent so much time answering  

Questions not asked but felt compelled to answer

(Because you thought some one in class might be asking  

Him or herself), I think you forgot why we were really there.

Paalam hebrephrenic Algebra teacher who placed me with a group of 

Brilliant broken-English speaking Asians upon being told I have

A learning disability related to math. You didn't understand my

Misunderstanding. I suppose you thought I could  

Learn through osmosis?

Good Day (Dr.) Sunshine, my let's-clap-our-hands-to the-beat

Rock and Roll History Professor. You did great getting non-music

Majors to finally understand the concept of syncopation. But when

In My Life did you say I will use those 18 pages about the Life and

Times of Roy Orbison (the longest report of my college career)?

So long fearless Sociology leader, who educated us by

Demonstrating exactly how a Social Deviant is expected to behave.

How wrong I was. I thought it was a class about how to avoid social

Outcasts, only to learn it was for those aspiring to be deviant;

To learn strong lessons on how to be one, successfully.

To all my professors I give thanks and express appreciation for

Sharing with us your colorful personal stories, and for enriching

Our lives with your enthusiasm. Without knowing it you all teach the

Same lesson: Education means falling in love with life, and  

Learning to take advantage of all of its possibilities.

~Naida Lavon (Sanchez)

1999

This was written in response to a poem called The Correspondence Instructor Says Goodbye to His Poetry Students, by Galway Kinnell. I was taking a poetry appreciation class and the professor read it to the class near the beginning of the term. I was insulted by it, so I went home and wrote this response and gave it to my professor (along with a few others I'd written) even though it wasn't a writing class. He gave it back to me with these comments:

Naida, this first poem is your most successful one. I love its whimsy, moreover, it has a physical quality that jumps out..

A lovely, slightly crazy poem.

(stanza 2) Ha! A good one. I'm laughing and sorry at once...

(stanza 4) Lovely

(stanza 5) Nice