The Echoes poetry competition to celebrate Write Out Loud's 20th anniversary is now open.  Judged by Neil Astley.

Competition closes in 8 days, 21 hours. Get details and Enter.

Leaping like calves

entry picture

Once, a young fresher was reading the rules, and was
        more than perplexed at the place where they state:
"All undergraduates, if they are Anglicans,
       must be in chapel each Sunday at eight."
Racking his brains, he began a small rumour that
       spread through the town on the weekdays that followed; he
was not an Anglican, nor Nonconformist; his
       faith and religion was mere Heliolatry.
Saturday evening, our hero retires with a
       smile on his face and his bin at his door,
only to wake to a thunderous hammering,
       made by the porter next morning at four.
Ah, how a little lie, told with great frequency,
       gains repercussions that no-one expects!
"Dawn's almost here, sir, the Chaplain expects you;
       go down to Main Court and you'll pay your respects."

This is no longer the rule, but it used to be.  "His bin at his door" = standard Cambridge signal that you don't want to be disturbed in the morning.

◄ Fury said to a fish

The naming of cats ►

Comments

Profile image

Yvonne Brunton

Fri 25th May 2012 21:27

Ah the penalties of not being a Jedi Knight.
I enjoyed this.

If you wish to post a comment you must login.

This site uses only functional cookies that are essential to the operation of the site. We do not use cookies related to advertising or tracking. By continuing to browse, you are agreeing to our use of cookies.

Find out more Hide this message