Monkey Mind

by IdTakeABulletForYou   Dec 10, 2018


I stare at the sharp silver edges
directly in the path I'm headed.
They rotate,
destroying all that enters
so that only slivers are left.
It's so loud my thoughts are lost.
A very narrow entrance awaits me,
and I comply with what tradition dictates:

I go forward,
ask no questions,
and am who I'm told to be.

All along, society has been this machine
herding us like cattle into it,
branding us unwillingly while dictating:
"Get in there, find your purpose!"
A very narrow entrance awaited me,
and I complied with what tradition dictated:

I went forward,
asked no questions,
and became one cog in a society
meant to destroy me,
ferrying barons upon my back
from one dream to another.

Never will I forget the person I was,
taken from me when I was much too young to fight.
I can remember shadows,
brief glimpses into a whole and unadulterated person,
the one before I walked through that narrow entrance
to give tradition another instrument
through which to replicate the process eternally.
The shredder in my head, a cacophony of noise,
grinds over and over until I hear nothing else but:

Go forward,
ask no questions,
and guide your children to that narrow entrance
so they may repeat your mistakes.

    report violation
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Latest Comments

  • 6 years ago

    by Milly Hayward

    A piece full of very valid truths. The greatest gift I think that a parent can give their child is to teach them how to think for themselves and take responsibility for their choices and not be a sheep following accepted social conventions. Happiness comes from being at peace with oneself in ones own skin without the shackles of someone else's expectations. An excellent piece. Milly x

  • 6 years ago

    by IdTakeABulletForYou

    Thanks everyone. I appreciate being able to share my uninhibited thoughts with you all and reckon you all seem to be people who won't lead their child to the same narrow path as everyone else seems to be leading theirs. Most of all thanks for taking the time to read :)

  • 6 years ago

    by DarkNDangerous

    Love poems about societal norms, and love to write them to. This was incredibly well done. Congrats on the nomination!

  • 6 years ago

    by Brenda

    Stephen, a very thought provoking write. So many true statements with this. As a parent we make our share of mistakes. We are also being guided by our own parents. It's definitely a trial and error in hopes we are doing right by that child. I dont think most of us come into our own until we are adults ourselves. Some if us never do, that narrow passage you so eloquently described as molded us forever. Well done-

  • 6 years ago

    by deeplydesturbed

    S - glad this is nominated..
    Its very true, a lot of us let our past and our parents (grandparents / guardians) define our future. We tend to repeat behavious we have seen growing up, no questions asked..
    Excellent work expressing this..

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