When my college reunion was announced, I began writing a poem.
I missed the physical event due to the complications of our car being filled with water, but I finished the poem anyway. That’s what this is.
A while ago
An age ago
I left a University
filled with a stomach full of hope and half a head of let's just see
having traded anecdotes
and studied some and kissed some folks and sung a bit and played guitar
I looked ahead
(well, not too far)
I broke a pipe and launched a hat
and made no further plans save that I’d
(while respecting social norm)
not necessarily conform
to labels, roles and shapes expected
by society’s architects.
So if, in future situations,
I was challenged by a nation
with a cruel acquired taste
for broken souls who knew their place
I promised to state
(nay, I swore)
“I’m not the droid you’re looking for”
I didn’t think I’d say it much
except job interviews and such where queries for positions billed
concerned mere roles they wanted filled instead of work they needed done.(Which is a shame. I find work fun.)
But much of what I’d hoped was lasting ended up as central casting.
Some dates judged less on connection than a template of affection,
then appeared somewhat annoyed when I explained
“I’m not the droid you’re…”
Looking for a fantasy projected?
Status quo protected? Low risk liability and servile safe utility?
Well, I’m not offering resistance
to this templated existence
honestly,
what seems defiance to traditional compliance
isn’t. It’s a never-ending
lack of skill
in bad pretending.
A true moment
is combining
thoughts
or energies aligning
at long tables
in small beds
whispered softly
loudly said
I’ve found myself reflected best in times
when ego acquiesced to harmony with people who
combined to create ever-new ideas and possibilities.
That’s what I learned in college.
Easy?
No; the path from there to here has been uncharted,
vague, unclear
chaotic, dangerous, disjointed
but I’ve not been disappointed
what I’ve lacked, I’ve never needed
serial failed ’til I succeeded
long endured with low complaint
gotten what I’ve given.
Ain’t it
funny all the effort spent toward
strengthening a “permanent record”
when no one’s checked my attendance,
or my grade point average?
If there is one thing
that I’ve protected it’s no image I’ve projected
but my choice to go through walls
when the world presents long hallways filled with nothing but locked doors.
I’m not the droid you’re looking for.
I hope you find the perfect model of your new automaton.
I’ll just go about my business
and then quietly
move along.
[ 29 May 2023]
...move along.