Copyright 2009 by S. Thomas Kaza
1
Their eyes wandered as I made my plea
Asking the school to somehow see
My son needs a place peanut free
To guarantee his safety and life
I told them the dangers he must face
Even if nuts are found in trace
I asked them to please provide the space
To ease my worry and strife
In the end they would only agree
To have one lunch table peanut free
We signed the papers to proceed
And I got up to leave with my wife
As we left, the principal approached us
"I hope you see now that we are quite serious.....
If somethings happens there's no need to worry.....
We'll get your son to the hospital in a hurry"
"In that case," I said
"He might already be dead"
2
I stood nearby and heard their ire
About my wife who had dared to inquire
if the popcorn they sold to any buyer
Was popped in peanut oil?
One of them jokingly said to the other
"We should have slipped that noisy mother.....
A peanut in her popcorn butter.....
That would have made her blood boil"
They cackled and laughed without a care
While other children waited there
Listening to the thoughtless pair
Use my wife as their foil
Oh, the lessons learned that night
From PTA mothers who took such delight
In mocking a mother who was only meaning
To advocate her child's health and well-being
Which by a recent edition
Is part of the PTA mission
3
The teacher was firm, her position steadfast
The problem was not the snacks used in class
And the solution was for my son to ask
If the food had nuts in it or not
"When he learns to ask," she strongly persisted
"He will do for himself unassisted.....
What you and your wife always insisted.....
And insure the safety you sought"
But what if people he asks are unsure?
Or what if the list of ingredients obscure?
Don't you think the answer would be poor?
And risk the safety we've got?
But the teacher would not think otherwise
In the end I was forced to "compromise"
I agreed to push my son to ask
She agreed to let us buy snacks for the class
What a sham!
What a shameless scam!
4
What I learned.....
They might know how to fill out the government forms.
They might know how to run PTA school events.
They may even know how to teach children to count with candy.
But they don't know that stinking, sinking feeling as you rush your child to the hospital.
They don't know how it feels to hold your screaming child in your arms
Trying to comfort them as their faces bloat out two sizes like a boxer beaten to a pulp
All the while thinking that this might be the last time you hold your child..... alive
Yes, I will face their bored faces, their mocking grins, their snide remarks.
I will fight them over each and every word and sentence on the forms they hide behind.
I will ask them over and over and over at every school event, every restaurant, every family picnic, until they hate to see me and don't bother to invite me anymore.
They may say they are tired of hearing me.
Bu tI will never tire of my son saying "Dad".
And I will consider any teacher, no matter how many children she has taught to count with candy to be worthless, if she cannot teach mine to count without
The Treasures I Keep
Copyright 2011 by S. Thomas Kaza
1
The ancient stars are twinkling
Revealing all to patient eyes
Yet I have but an inkling
Of where my own path lies
Should I gather coin and bill?
Should I purchase land?
Build a little empire
To rule by my own hand?
Should I study books and charts?
Attain a higher degree?
Climb an ivory tower
And write my masterpiece?
Or should I serve my fellow man?
Take on a sacred cause?
Earn my points in heavan
And give the angels pause?
2
The eternal night grows deeper
Hiding all from prying eyes
Yet as my pride grows weaker
I begin to realize
I may not have the answers
The meaning of my birth
But I trust my heart will show me
My purpose on this earth
For all is coming
All is coming
All is coming in time
And we have but to wait
To encounter our fate
But to do nothing at all
To do at all nothing
To do nothing
Nothing
3
The treasures I now keep
Lay warm and fast asleep
Their dreams and mine
Are forever entwined
Sleep! Sleep!
Until the golden sunrise
Wakens your eyes
What if we are Ghosts?
Copyright 2010 by S. Thomas Kaza
What if we are ghosts?
Destined to haunt the dark halls of this world
Until we realize we are mere shadows of our real selves
That walk in the warmth and the beauty of the light
On Waking
Copyright 2008 by S. Thomas Kaza
I wake
From a dream
Leaving the multitude
Of a million realities behind me
For just this one, brief neurological leap
Into the moment
Like a great actor
Returning to the stage
For one final performance
As time and dimension
Fly forth from me
To take their assigned places
