Practical Haikus using the Nazis to Describe Your High School

Last fall, I attended a poetry slam, where one of my seniors wrote a poem about her school day. One line that stuck with me: “This place is like a concentration camp.”

What a brilliant comparison. Incisive, historically contextual, revelatory. However, I figured she might need a little guidance if she’s truly found her vocation of Full-Throated Poet for a Generation, so I wrote her some verses designed to show how it’s really done.

My high school is a
school, a place where I learn skills.
Just like the Nazis did.

Oh man. This class sucks.
We have homework? Hey, teacher?
Hitler gave homework.

I just studied the
history of Auschwitz, and
I got déjà-vu.

School is so tragic,
The death, the pain and suffering.
The Holocaust, too.

I hope she appreciates this. She hasn't even thanked me yet.

A sad, miserable student. Comparisons between 

her situation and Auschwitz are inevitable.