Ode to Chemistry

Bewildering hodgepodge of equations
Concocted in a hurry
Speckled with pesky formulae
I’m in an awful quandary!
Bewitching blue of Copper sulphate
Wizard’s own heady brew
That Chemistry [ugh] could produce such marvels
Was too good to be true!
But when I tried to conjure up
That shade of awesome azure
I broke a test tube, burnt my fingers
And wiped an acidic tear
Organic chemistry
I’m confused – how could it be otherwise
With so many H’s and C’s?
There’s nothing to do but weep and cry
And write bad poetry!
All the sulphates and nitrates
A most insipid melange
Play havoc with my muddled brain
Aqueous or fused
Who really cares? I for one
Am utterly and bitterly bemused
I hope I’ll be able to remember
The difference between
Iron II and Iron III
For it’s the day of my Chem exam
And I’m rather jittery
So in honour of this miserable occasion
I’ve composed
An ode to Chemistry.


By Malvika Parthasarathy