Empty School In Summer Poem by Elizabeth Shield

The children rush in hasty hordes
Freed from desks and chairs of knowledge
They crowd the gates, and tan paved walkways
Hugging old friends goodbye they race to their busses
Or run down the street, headed to the PX
Or the movie theater, they will haunt the public areas
Long after the teachers have gone, they will run about
Downtown, in the big round mall, by the Hauptbahnhof
They walk in pairs, they run in crowds, until
The scuffed up floors are empty now, the lockers clean
The windows shut, the doors all locked, everyone
Is at home, or far away, and still the building sits
Empty and alone, gates locked, deserted
They look at it a laugh
"We shall not return to you again! " they proudly say
and saunter off, heads held high, in the company of friends
they do not hear the quiet answer, it comes later, when all
the streets are empty, the building answers, a dusty echo
"I will see you in September"
But they don't look back.