One red leaf in the thick grass—
The apples from the tree
Are polished for a final time
As the daylight dies away.
Pictures are coddled against the shock
Of every student's bodies,
For the immortality of the moment,
The fact of change.
Breakup songs accompany
The interminable procession,
The delivery of diplomas like pizzas
Across a threshold,
Candles at the family tables
Like an awards show
As the lights of distant cars
Brush across the stars.
A celebration of life so far,
They call it through the tears,
A reward for hard, forgotten work
That soon will seem like play.
The honored squirm in grown-up clothes,
Giggle uncontrollably
Through another boring ceremony
Before they are set free.
One's death is always more interesting
To celebrate,
The close scrapes and mortal mistakes
Made along the way
As each gesture of defiance, every one,
Turned out wrong.
That's why they call it learning
Not survival.
