Jan 12, 2020
Our alphabet has plenty of
ho hum straight lines,
with most letters, it’s not hard
to stick to the confines
of classroom lined paper,
or boxes on a form,
but a few of them confound
from grade school to the dorm
(and beyond, let’s be honest,
penmanship’s a skill
that takes a lengthy lifetime
to master and instill).
A few curves here and there
most of us can handle,
C’s and D’s and even P’s
we’ll scrawl without scandal.
W’s and even A’s may
throw us for a loop,
lost proportionality
can be hard to recoup,
but one sneaky letter —
evil powers it possesses —
it can make mice of men,
yes — I’m talking about S’s!
Half the time the top half
is too skinny or too bloated,
while the belly lies squashed,
aesthetically demoted.
Hard to keep your tracing hand
unswervingly steady,
to ensure the damn letter
doesn’t end up top-heavy!
Capital S, your game is up,
pencils down — you’re busted!
I see now you’re nothing but
an 8, interrupted!
It was Elle’s humor piece below which got me thinking about the shapes of our numbers & letters
