I couldn’t do my homework.
I had asthma and was wheezing.
I had nosebleeds, measles, heat rash,
with some very painful sneezing,
and itchy skin with blisters—
oh so blotchy red and hivy—
malaria and toothaches,
and a patch of poison ivy,
eight spider bites and hair loss,
and a broken leg with scabies,
Rocky Mountain spotted fever,
and a full-blown case of rabies.
I suffered—it was awful—
but I’m feeling better now.
Could I have done my homework?
No, I really don’t see how.
Text © Joyce Armor, reprinted from No More Homework! No More Tests! published by Meadowbrook Press. Illustration © Stephen Carpenter. Any copying or use of this poem or illustration without consent is unlawful.
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