they don’t want us
to think for ourselves;
it’s too inconvenient
for them
for us
to think for ourselves.
to feel for ourselves.
this is nothing new.
they’ve never liked it
when we try to be
as human
as they fear
we might become.
so the stories
of who we are
and why we are
have been stolen
and twisted into
who we must be
and their reasons
why.
love and hope
do not serve
their purposes;
fear and obedience
are far more useful.
in exchange,
we get
false security
and some stuff
for which
we work hard
and pay dearly.
we substitute
the stuff
for meaning,
the work
for purpose.
and as much
as i would like
to laugh off
these words
as yet another
tiresome and trite
anti-“them” screed,
it sickens me to know
how true it all is.
now i have to decide
who to kill
and who to obey:
them,
or me?