Typewriter

A fresh college graduate looking for a job To undergo trials one of which is the typing test Handed over a text passage to pound on the keypad Typing 40 to 50 words per minute, I needed to press Facing a manual typewriter, rested fingers to home keys Try to feel the small bumps on the F and J keys Now confident, curled fingers to position strategically Hoping to type the text reflexively Altering the upper and lower case, pinky fingers strike shift keys Reaching the number keys on upper level makes it fiddly Pressing the keys very hard to swing the type-bar up The carriage travels to the far right sluggishly Leaving an imprint of the characters I was whisked away by my disappointment Never repeat same fate in front of a manual typewriter The rhythm goes with each keystroke adapting to its component The next day I saw a Remington typewriter So old that typebars entangled so often Curious to type words, always an attempter At its clickety-clack sound, a relic of a bygone age 15 May 2013