I Was a Pilgrim!

I Was a Pilgrim

Oft I’ve wondered out under the sky
(OK, “oft” is a number not that high
Too much pollution no planetarium close
And too much abuse of my ambien dose)

But here’s what I’d wonder if I stayed up late:
Is it nature or nurture that parlays our fate?
Physics might surely completely determine
Are we a Pasteur, Madame Curie or Pee Wee Herman

Was the die cast from an implausible quark
My future my past an unalterable arc?
Is my life-long despairing caused by DNA?
Or because my parents blew off my 2nd grade play?

I was a pilgrim! I wore shoes with buckles
Would it have killed them, to go to the trouble
to take some time from their graying days
They missed my line in “Amazing Maze”!

I can recall it even now:
“How!”

Is it simply genetics that makes life unfair?
Or my parents pathetic attempts to care?
Darwin would say I need to get fitter
But maybe that play is why I’m a quitter

I was a pilgrim! You shoulda seen those shoes
Hey I filled ‘em and there were even reviews
and a picture – St. Anne’s Elementary News
It was on our fridge but I was not soothed

I know what you’re saying, my argument’s refutable
My parents were obeying laws immutable
But hey they coulda just shoulda resisted The Grand Plan
some laws are unjust Take a fucking stand man!

There are those who leave their mark, who will not give an inch
Jesus, Ghandi, Joan of Arc and early David Lynch
But my parents bowed to power, oh how they would have loved it
It was my finest hour, I carried a musket

They paid for my degrees it’s the least they could do
My rent and my therapy now I’m a therapist too
So now they’re broke (look what karma set loose
Grandpa had a stroke was their 2nd grade excuse )

Up in the attic I take the stage
And I reenact it but with a new page
My parents are there

I see them now

And before my bow

I take my vow

“How!”

Throughout November I am writing a poem every day as part of an effort to raise funds for The Center For New Americans. If you like the poems (or even if you don’t) and would like to support this fantastic organization, please follow this link. Thanks.