I've had many teachers
But one of my favourites
Or most memorable
Was Clive Wansborough

He was my Year 9 English teacher
He said you could call him Clive

We had argumentative debates
About Jimi Hendrix,
Electronic music
The Smiths and vegetarianism

We started each class with a meditation
Closing your eyes
Filling your lungs to 75% capacity
In and out
Relaxing, the sound of his voice
Counting you into relaxation

He said I'd written the best piece of writing
He'd read in 10 years
About my experiences in Little Athletics
Being afraid of the finishing line
Afraid that it would clothesline me

I think I had a **** in his class once
Pearse and I were mucking around in front
Uncontrollable teenage hormones
Reading ***** literature

But I felt creative in his class
I wrote about a river flowing
from your mind down your arm
And into your pen

And I think he quoted it
When he said something like
If you don't know where to begin
Or don't know what to say
Just write
Just write
That was Clive's advice