From the Writer's Almanac

Poem: "You Go to School to Learn" by Thomas Lux from New & Selected Poems © Houghton Mifflin. Reprinted with permission.

You Go to School to Learn

You go to school to learn to read and add, to someday make some money.

It—money—makes sense: you need a better tractor, an addition to the gameroom, you prefe rto buy your beancurd by the barrel

There's no other way to get the goods you need.

Besides, it keeps people busy working—for it.

It's sensible and, therefore, you go to school to learn (and the teacher,having learned, gets paid to teach you) how to get it.

Fine. But:you're taught away from poetry or, say, dancing (That's nice, dear,but there's no dough in it).

No poem ever bought a hamburger, or not too many

It's true,and so, every morning—it's still dark!—you see them, the children,

like angels being marched off to execution,or banks.

Their bodies luminous in headlights.

Going to school.