A scratching of lead pencils and a shuffling of feet
I hear these sounds and I shift anxiously in my seat
I gather up my backpack, pencils, books, and other things
I bolt out of my chair the moment the loud school bell rings

Pushing, shoving, anything to get me through the door
I feel a foot step on my own, then two, then three and more
A head against my backpack and an elbow in my side,
I often start to wonder how the doors are just not wide

Finally victorious, I emerge from the room
And face another hurdle in this hallway filled with doom
Upperclassmen populate the hall in which I stand
I'm starting to get nervous; fellow freshmen understand

Some people who are older do not understand my plight
My parents, for example, think this topic should be light
They wonder how it takes so long to get down one hallway
I tell them, "Take a walk in my shoes - down that hall - someday."

Then I bet they'd understand my fear as I fight my way
Through corridors so windowless, it could be night or day
Rushing, rushing aimlessly through hallways, science and math
I'm hoping desperately that I might find a new path

It's not as though the hallways are what fill me with such fright
In fact, the corridors are rather cheerful, some are bright
Painted with great illustrations; I'd love to stop and stare
But that would make me late to class, and of that, I am scared

Pushing my way through the crowd, I have no time to stop
Hoping from my arms my books and binders will not drop
At the end of the hall, I am seemingly past worry
But getting downstairs between classes is another story

Moving at a pace so slow a turtle might have passed,
I'm praying now despondently I'll make it to my class
Stopping for a moment now to talk with all my friends
Is not an optiong; no time now until this short break ends

Rushing now through crowded halls so cramped it's hard to see,
I start to fret and think how bad one detention might be
Shoving now, I'm terrified, and I wish for a late pass
I see the desks and breathe again - I made it to my class