He still remembers it
Vividly, painfully.
Overt slights,
Disregard for his opinion,
Domineering imposition,
Unnecessary fighting
In the midst of a
Horrible situation.
Feeble, broken people
Hobbling around anxiously,
Making each others’
Lives miserable as
They stand vigil.
Every time the phone rang I’d
Get an anxious, uncomfortable,
Crawling feeling because I knew
What was on the other end.
Syrupy sweet platitudes and
Depressingly shallow exchanges
About nothing in particular and of
Excruciatingly little interest to me.
Gritting my teeth, rubbing my temples
To pacify the misery, hoping this
Would be the last time I’d have to
Deal with this unsolicited dross.
Rabidly punishing
Other people for
The very thing
They’ve done and
Now rail against,
Hoping nobody
Will discover
Their trespasses.
How can you learn anything
Without the insight that
Something needs to be learned.
No reason to try anything new
When you have the courage of
Your convictions and assumptions
Propping you up. Why bother
Expanding your mind when things
Are already arranged in neat,
Undisturbed rows covered in the
Dust of disuse. What a mess it
Would be to even begin airing this
Place out. Why even start.
At a lunch gathering
With some close friends,
She strenuously insists
That she’s not a feminist,
Then talks passionately
About how women should
Be paid the same as men
And how there shouldn’t be
A glass ceiling or any type of
Discrimination against
Anyone based on gender.
Everyone should have
The same rights, she says
To herself, remembering the
Occasions when leering,
Incompetent people
Made her life difficult
Just because it was
Socially acceptable.
She wants to make sure that
Her daughters have an easier
Time than she did.
They had very few
Conversations of any import,
Mostly directive affairs
Where the father talked
At the son, but he remembers
That one time his father told
Him he really liked his
Perspective on self-sufficiency.
Until the day he died,
His father never realized he
Didn’t mean leaving people to
Fend for themselves against
Ruthless corporations and
An inhumane ruling class.
He could never explain,
Some doors just aren’t open.
No amount of influence, number of
Titles, material riches, or
Adulation from the connected
Matters to those who don’t
First feel important inside.
Conquering the highest peaks,
Mastering the most arduous disciplines,
Vanquishing the most threatening foes,
None of it matters to those who don’t
First feel adequate inside.
Overcome the most formidable
Opponent possible, the one creating the
Waves of insecurity and trepidation,
The only entity who can tend to
These matters, you.
Mile after mile of
Abject gloom,
Not a glimpse of
Sunshine.
They keep walking,
Knowing they will
One day arrive.
Unwittingly,
Irrevocably
Steeped in a
Culture that rewards
Superficial displays of
Bluster masking
Crippling insecurity.
A child flexing his muscle,
Immersed in the language and
Lifestyle of violence,
As if nothing;
Perpetuating misery,
Dysfunction.
