sense – PoetryPix

“The world that used to nurse us
now keeps shouting insane instructions.
That’s why I ran to the woods.”
~ Jim Harrison from Songs of Unreason

There was always that false sense
of security – the kind where at any moment
the nurse will drop you on your head
knocking sense they called it
and in order to remain right way up
I took on the sensibility of common sense
honed it to such a degree that I’d scoff at
fools who suffered gladly

Only later did I see how worldly-wise
their hard-headed methodology, how fit for roles
the ease at which they slipped into scripts
ready-made robes of office – I tried them on
but people called after me in the street: charlatan
and showed me the door – heavy, unmarked doors
with a baby head knocker of Indian rubber
weaned here on sheep cheese and dumdum pills
and if ever I bawled for a heavenly father
they’d tuck me up nicely with the warmest of currents

And when the exit doors did lumber open
I headed straight for the woods and raised trees
instead of people