fear poems

Remark

It was a remark
That made everyone
Pause for a moment and
Perform a reluctant
Self-inventory before
Deciding what to do next.
No one spoke up,
This being a civilized
Place inhabited by
Fearful creatures who
Give wide berth to
The loudest voice and
Keep their objections,
If they had any,
To themselves, allowing
The blowhard to spread
His disease everywhere.

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Why It’s Happening

Though these could be
Moments of reflection,
They instead become
Frantic lurches from
One place to another
Desperately trying to
Make the discomfort
Go away and replace it
With who knows what,
Because nobody really
Acknowledges anything
Or is willing talk about
What’s really going on
And why it’s happening.

Suppressed

A mundane street
Racked with fear.

Unfulfilled dreams
Hastily banished.

Superficial conversations
About nothing important.

Minimizing risk,
Averse to change.

Laughter suppressed,
Letting life happen to them.

Their Place

At the same time
He discriminates
Against others,
He reasserts his
Belief that he
Is being
Discriminated against
And that his already
Dominant group
Should stand up
For itself against
The multihued infidels
Who are uppity
Enough to question
Their place.

Unspoken Code

An unspoken code
Keeps them all
In line, sporting
The same clothes —
Physical appearance —
Mores —
Social rules
That keep them
Stuck in a delusion
Of normalcy based
On fearful assumptions
About almost everything.

We Really Do

We really don’t know how to
Say this, but we’re not sure
That things are going to
Work out, not because of
Anything you did…
Actually… (stammering),
Mainly because it just
Wasn’t what we thought it
Would be and we have to
Change it as quickly as
Possible, even though we
Really don’t have a reason
For doing it, although
We really do but would never
Just say it out loud.

Inside the Lines

So she began, with
Hopes and dreams and
Excitement at what the
Future might bring.
Arranged everything, as
She’d been taught and
Introduced some new, fresh
Ideas with optimistic intention.

Not enough for those
Who had lost the luster.
Years of being tumbled around,
Disoriented, missing a compass,
Hearts expired, vision clouded.
Excitement stifled, passion quelled.
Encouraged to behave just like the others.
Color inside the lines.

Tribalism

She conflates liberty
With fear, harshness,
Selfishness, tribalism;
A martial solution to
Every perceived problem,
Freedom meted at the
End of a weapon,
Without any deliberation,
Remorse.
Perpetrators posing as victims,
Misdirected scorn.
Gird the wagons,
The sky is surely falling
Today, tomorrow, always.

Those Days

Don’t worry ma’am,
It’s just a formality.
What was that?
Oh, yes, it’s a new
Policy, the bill just
Passed in the last
Session. I know,
It’s an inconvenience,
But it’s just the rules.
Everyone has to have
Some kind of identification
To vote. Oh no,
Not at all,
This is nothing like
Those days.
Will that be all?
Next.