Inspired By a High School Rapper

Year after year, young people inspire me. The freshness of youth brings forth curiosity. Diversity and personality scream, it seems – Noisily, boisterously, playfully, hope knocks. Each child has amazing talents to unlock. Shy ones work in silence while some classmates tease. Others squirm around on a whim and a breeze. Did you guess? I am a substitute teacher. I learn something new every day that I work. I guess you might say it is a hidden perk. I love my work and I love to learn from many. There was one high school boy A class leader who loved to rap – Talking, laughing, rapping; class behavior zapped. I saw impending disruption; So, I struck a deal. My clever solution was a bit surreal. When everyone finished their work, he could rap. Work first, then fun was my motto; he took charge. His group of "homies” got to work right away. The classroom was silent that wonderful day. So, just as I promised, ten minutes at the end, He started a beat others joined from their seat. Line upon line he rapped words with rhyme. Then, point to a classmate who would rap in time. It was so much fun to see faces aglow. When he pointed to me, I used poetry. From that day forward, when he was in my class, He would ask me to write a class poem, alas. They would give me a topic and a few key words. The students worked first; then, my poem was heard. They would listen to my poems line after line. I can still see his face after all of these years. The sparkle in his eyes untangled my fears. Years later, I was bored out of my mind. My hip disintegrated; I was confined. What would I do? The answer, I could not find. I remembered that boy and that he liked my work. It was his and his classmates’ reactions – They influenced me to take writing action. I joined Poetry Soup; poetry became a love affair. I met friends, studied forms and wrote anywhere. Paper towels or notebook paper, it mattered not. When away from my computer, I would jot. That boy brought the beginning; self-confidence. His cheery influence blessed me with lifetime joy. They liked my poems; so, I wrote thousands more. All of this because of one young boy who will never know, It was his good-word raps that set my soul aglow. March 8, 2017 Written for the Poetry Contest - Younger People Who Have Inspired You