You’re born

you’re raised

and you begin to fry

 

the layers of innocence

and freedom

singed straight through

 

a city of skeletons

driving kids to soccer practice

in the safest Volvo money can buy

 

but their skin begins to blister

then blacken then break away

and soon they’ll be just like you

***

The liars become leaders

Bond villains in control

as skeletons sit in traffic

 

hearing news that heaven wants us

to do as we’re told

and fall into line and earn

 

move along

move away

you’re the wrong demographic

 

across the sea to an island

where you sit and watch

the world catch fire and burn

***

This is the tenth poem of my personal 30-day poetry challenge to break away from the machine to think about things that don’t matter. I have no idea what I’m doing. – Jim

Falling in Love
Women

Jim Mitchem

Writer. Father to daughters. Husband. Ad man. Raised by wolves. @jmitchem on twitter. First novel, Minor King, out now.

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