They make you jump through many hoops,
Filling forms, doctors’ notes needed,
Hoping that’s all they need to choose,
To stop them feeling so cheated.
Bureaucratic nightmare lies in wait.
Consuming all hope lade before,
Dancing over your broken dreams
At your inadequacies, a mirthless guffaw.
Yet, you put yourself to their tests,
Bracing to be found not quite whole.
Living through examination stress,
A dark foreboding rigmarole.
Poked, prodded, your history judged,
Biting back tears, the trickling flood.