exams come to examine

every part of our character.

some times we pass, and passing on our knowledge to friends and family may help fears to lift, and things feel normal, a while.

the wind is coming again i hear, another exam.

you can forge the sick note.

how is it?

I am a student in Paris, a med-school freshman, one of the crowd.
This week is all introductions, orientation functions and instructions.
“Settle in, get your books, parking passes and find your classes.”
I got my ID - I’m a Vip in the bourgeoisie - does that look like me?

Freshmen join a ‘buddy program’ so things seem less hostile
I met my buddy last week, she’s the consummate boss - effortlessly busy.
She’s got my folder (oh my), full of check-lists. I’ve yet to see her smile.
She’s a third year, from Chamonix, a town in the jagged Alps, near Italy.

If you want me, right after classes, I’ll be at Les Deux Parisiens,
a shaded coffee shop across from school that feels like a garden.
They have everything - from coffee to pizza and martinis - it’s awesome.
For 17€ : try the ‘La Campione,’ pizza with beef and chorizo (sausage)

I am a student in the misty rain, stepping carefully on cobblestones
- they pool water geometrically - I’m heading home (6 Av.) walking alone.
Nothing’s still, classes end at noon - it’s the city, sidewalk’s are full, Ubers uber, mopeds mope, bikers bike, people scatter, umbrellaless commuters.

I haven’t made any new friends yet - I’m not worried - I’m just beginning.
.
.
Songs for this:
Day Tripper by MonaLisa Twins
Café Europa by Quadro Nuevo
Count Contessa by Azealia Banks & Lone [E]
Robinson Crusoe by Art of Noise

(for Joy Bernadette Spavins, née Moss)
16/06/1958 - 22/04/2023

She passed in peace,
in sleep, in grace—
a whisper of Saturday morning light
on April’s quiet breath.

Loving wife.
Devoted mother.
Ten grandchildren held in her laughter,
five children cradled in her strength.

She danced before diagnosis,
and after.
She told stories that
stitched us back together.

We called her Joy—
not just a name,
but a way of being:
cheeky smile,
BIG!!! cuddle,
a welcome that felt like home.

She put others first,
even when her body asked for rest.
She gave without ledger,
loved without condition.

We kissed her goodbye
at New Springs Church,
but she’s still here—
in every echo of kindness,
every laugh that tastes like memory.

Joy to the world,
we said.
And meant it.
Amen