No Boy Scout. Poem by Terry Collett

Dick Morcraft said why
don’t you come to the

boy scouts tonight in the
church hall and learn how

to tie knots with ropes and
light fires with two sticks

and how to raise a tent and
in the summer we get to go

out in the wild countryside
and sleep under the night sky

and stars and canvas and sit
round the blazing campfire

singing songs together? and
you said all right and went

along but you got into a fight
with some fat kid who tried

to push you off the ropes and
so the scoutmaster sent you

off home and Morcraft said
next day you should have and

ignored the kid and stayed but
you couldn’t then and never did.