The Liberals didn’t know
the deficit would be three times their
estimate.
Nor did they know
international agreements
would be in their way of legalising
pot.
And how could they know
bringing in Syrian refugees
would be such a challenge
they couldn’t meet their own
deadline?
I remember trying it in Grade 4,
telling my teacher
– straight face, eye contact –
that I didn’t know the homework was for today.
That evening,
Mom needed to write a note,
explain,
apologise.
(Editor’s note: poet Shai Ben-Shalom, an Israeli-born biologist, examines current events in the Blacklock’s tradition each and every Sunday)