Doug and His Vanishing Hope

A Tale of a Long Island Teacher

by Michael Keany

Young Doug had a dream when he started to teach,
To own a small home near the sand and the beach.
With a master's degree and a classroom to run,
He thought that his future had only begun.
But the bills kept on coming, the prices all rose,
And the dream of a home slipped away, heaven knows.

Six years in the classroom, his salary grew,
Yet taxes and pensions took more than he knew.
His college loans followed like shadows at night,
His old Toyota was losing the fight.
He tended a bar just to earn something more,
Then trudged down the steps to his basement-floor door.

His mother was kind, and the rent wasn't high,
But Doug watched his thirty-first birthday go by.
His friends bought their houses, had children and wives,
While Doug counted dollars and measured their lives.
He graded his papers beneath a low beam,
And wondered what happened to his American Dream.

He taught about Lincoln, ambition, and grit,
How hard work and courage would help you to fit.
He told all his students, "Aim high and believe!"
Then wondered himself what he'd ever achieve.
For the children he taught, he had hope to impart,
While the hope for himself slowly drained from his heart.

But somewhere inside him a small ember glowed,
Despite all the debts and the difficult road.
Perhaps things would change; perhaps wages would rise,
Perhaps there'd be room for his dreams to survive.
Till then he'd keep teaching, though weary and worn—
Giving children a future he feared he'd never own.

Author Note:  Doug is a fictional character.

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Prepared with the assistance of AI software OpenAI. (2026). ChatGPT (5.2) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com