Twas the morning before field day
and all through the hall,
the children were gathering books –
but not all –
for one middle schooler was not doing that
but instead put on his field day hat.
He wore it all day
and through the night
until through his blinds streamed morning’s light.
Once at school he put on his gym socks, too,
and hurried out to the green,
where he perspired and sweat
so it was seen.
At the end of the day
he put back his socks and his hat
yes, yes, he did just that.
They infested and were bested
by the smell of rotting garbage
they stank so bad
they made the janitor sad
that he was still alive.
The next day the boy walked in
to exclamations of surprise
for in his locker sat his socks and hat,
moldy and unkind.
Now the boy is on the floor
because of the awful smell
and that is the story of stinky gym socks
that I will continue to tell.