"Wake up! Wake up!" the alarm clock screams
Shattering the perfect illusion in my dreams
Reluctantly I drag myself out of bed
Glaring at the darned timepiece and knocking it dead

Aargh! Oh no, what a shock! What a scare!
This day has become my absolute nightmare!
That horrible, disgusting, disfiguring zit!
With simply no way of disguising it!

There are days when I really hate everything
From my reflection in the mirror to the innocent birds chirping
I can't help myself, blame it on the awkward stages
That everyone calls "raging hormones", experienced at teen ages

My mood swings from bad to worse as I find out
That I still have unfinished homework left about
Overdue projects, long-forgotten essays
Which I had been putting off for days

I shudder to think of teacher's reaction
Strict as she is, sure to take serious action
Possibly demerit marks, or worse, going for DC*
The prefects' favourite way of tormenting me

But falsehood would not do at all, no
Imagine, my parents would probably go
"How could you! We are so disappointed in you."
And shake their heads, sadly but angrily too

School's not a much better place to be
Especially if you're not of the "cool gang", you see
The student bodies can be summed up nicely by listing down
The geek squad, the popular crowd plus the virtual unknowns

Lost in a world of their own, the nerds hang out
In the library, exams are all they care about
Too busy studying, poring over their books
Not even acknowledging others' odd looks

MTV, guys and fashionable clothes and big parties
Are all the cool girls think about (puh-lease!)
Oh wait, did you hear about that.?
Juicy gossip, plus everything they consider "phat"

Lastly, the ones who hide in others' shadow
Well, what can be said that won't sound shallow?
Quite possibly, they always succumb to insecurity
From growing, maturing, which is much of a pity

School is where we meet new friends,
Learn new things and experience the trends
A jolly place, full of merry laughter and smiles
Never mundane, not even for a while

To mould our minds, to develop our abilities
To grow us up, physically, mentally and socially
That is the reason we go to school, for one
Also to learn to play hard and have fun

There are downsides to school too, yes we know
Such as those tiresome rules we're all made to follow
Break one, and face the consequences you shall
So tread carefully as we, lest you trip and fall

Here is where we are taught discipline
To be prim and proper, clean of all sin
" No chewing gum allowed! No talking in class!"
Rule breakers will not be tolerated, nor people rude and crass

Seemingly endless assemblies every single Monday
Mind-numbing pep talks that make us wish we were far away
Such are these the "tortures" students have to endure
Sounds fair and square? Yeah right, don't be too sure

Back breaking bags that we lug with all our might
Fierce and scary teachers that make us jump in fright
These are all part of the life of an ordinary schoolgirl
A hectic, busy, crammed-and-near-exploding swirl

Geography, History, language subjects and Maths
Are still mysteries to many of us, just like that
Terribly confusing questions that clog up our brains
And leave us puzzling over them all night long (not again!)

"Oh no, I've failed my exams! Another D!"
Echoes of disappointment are heard all around me
Teachers try their best to encourage, also to explain
Hoping we'd strive to achieve the highest results we can attain

School and stress seem to always come in a package
The competitiveness, the need to succeed, the feeling of being caged
Aargh! I can't take it anymore, this heavy burden
Laid on students, who are pushed hard to learn

To be a school going teen seems like a curse
To the uninformed mind, what could possibly be worse?
Nobody seems to know, seems to understand
The pressure we deal with and the trials of life at hand

I seem to bite off more than I'm able to chew
Trying to take in stuff that are alien and new
Ambition and passion drive me towards my goals
And on the path to success, school plays a crucial role

But as long as we still have faith, we will always try
To face all hardships, even if they won't be easy (sigh!)
Never to give up hope, to take life as it comes
And maybe, just maybe one day we'll learn to love sums

That just about sums up a typical teen's point of view
On how school life is, at times sweet yet sometimes horribly askew
But no matter what happens, we'll have to take the good and bad
Along with a pinch of salt, as well as the happy and the sad

* DC-also commonly known as detention class in my school