I must be careful
coquettish is our Talking Head
doing the usual exercise
over our matriculation results

careful that she does not
repeat herself as bigwigs do
(all are dressed up they are)

The crème de la crème
it is said of our matrics
taking the country forward
to the Fourth Industrial Revolution

(hewers of wood
and drawers of water
lower down in the line)

elsewhere on radio and TV
there is enduring censure
unfortunately also an
exercise done annually

Equal Education is cited
wondering about all the fanfare
(they question consistently –
think pit latrines for instance
and norms and standards)

is it all doom and gloom
as we are reminded
that our Grade 4s struggle
to read for comprehension

and right down to earth we go
as a Mitchells Plain mother
wonders about absent fathers
she tells of corruption
at her little village’s courts

somewhere learners speak
of their sacrifices and that
of their families and communities
over their 12 years of grind

I must be careful