I’m conferencing with students

On their first drafts

And this one has taken the course

Twice before and failed

And he brings me only two pages

Of the six I assigned

And he says he’s having trouble

With the summaries

And also should he put the thesis

In the introduction

Or just where do I want it to go

And I say it depends

On if you want to start with a question

And then examine

How others have responded to it

And then your answer

Would be your thesis in your conclusion

But then I realize oops

He’s standing before a vending machine

And I won’t take his dollar.