History Class

there were no small boxes in those history books
and yet you played with hearts
before the start, 
before Miss Hey rang the two second bell.
we lept like gazelles to our seats
while planning our escape

a distant time in a distant place
where captured minds rued the day
young minds stuck on repeat,
fueled by hatred, learned contempt
passed down from generation to generation
speaking without thinking
thinking without relevant thoughts

and then, there she was
a different girl from a different place
out of step with the rest,
shy and quiet
with a gift unspoken ...