all these hands
pushing off each other
like factory farm fish
like slave-ships
packed to brim
there are real
and invisible fences
that separate us
i like you
sitting in this room
not saying much
your lips wrestling
each other like
trying to get a pillow
case on a pillow
i use coffee
to offer my full self
this wide eyed skeleton
to those who want it
i see a man
with papers
using coffee
getting ready
to make money
huntington online banking
asks me embarra**ing questions
like 'what was your first job'
and 'who is your favorite author'
to verify my identity
huntington online banking
seems like an old friend
who recognizes the bone
structure of my face
or the way i am walking
down high street in columbus
and asks me 'what high
school did you attend'
cause now i have a mustache
and am skinnier but
'you look familiar though'
he looks me up and down
and offers me a total
balance of $5.70
i am hugging my computer
does my computer have eyes
does my computer know
i am claiming power over it
monsanto corporation
is claiming power
over soybeans
monsanto corporation hired
forty five private investigators
to ensure their continuous ability
to claim power over soybeans
'unimpeded profit'
when i am eating vegetables
i want my teeth to whisper
little thank you's to them
and send them forward
through my body
with grace and
gratefulness
there should be self-esteem
checkpoints and courtesy
rest areas throughout
the digestion process
i want turnips to understand
i do not wish to
claim power over them
responding with violence
to a violent world does not
feel ok to me
i don't know
i feel like arguing abstract ideas
or claiming existential crises
or not enough coffee
should be okay
if someone feels disappointed with you
tell them they are thinking
of a single version of you
that they have developed
overtime as the 'standard'
and that 'no one can be
the same person all the time'
regardless of what
any self-help book
or advice corner
wants to say