THE TRUTH IN MAKE BELIEVE

I find myself lying on the back
Of a huge white swan
Life seems good
No worries
The waves are mild while the
Sun is about to set
I move along in my dreamland
This is really living
I am alone inside my angel self
Can think of all the happiness
I have known and the
Wonderful people who have
Been a big part of my life
There have been many even though
I consider myself to be a loner
I do a lot of thinking
Critical thinking
I am knocked off balance 
By a large wave and
Suddenly come back to reality
There is no swan
I am lying on a towel on the beach
The wave was just a normal event
Expressing itself enthusiastically 
I get back to critical thinking
And am fully aware of the present
We are in a grave situation
People on the wrong side are cheering
They won and are in charge
What is five or six trillion anyway?
What are hundreds shot each week
In our big blue cities
Who cares about the looting?
The release of dangerous criminals
Protecting them from exposure to Covid-19
That is what winners do
Raping and terrorizing is what the criminals do
Our border was reopened – welcome
My brothers and sisters (normal gender terms)
We will give you shelter, healthcare, schooling,
Food stamps and anything else you need
If you have the Chinese Virus we will treat you
We know you are from all over the world
A good share of you are criminals and are worse
Than the members of the Mexican cartel
But that is okay
You will speed up the breakdown of America
Most of you know what repression is
You are used to being told what you can do
And how to dress and who to talk with
This is what we want for all of us
Two years ago, approximately, we had
A country moving in the right direction
In spite of having our president 
Constantly harassed and investigated
We had the best economy ever with
Employment opportunities for everyone
We were energy independent 
Our military was strong
We started no wars, brought more
Then a modicum of peace to the Middle East
We were respected around the world
We ended foolish commitments to groups
That we fully funded, but had on real say
Now another wave hits me and I think of
The mess we are in after being led for
Eight months by the present occupant
I think of people who have lost their business
The peaceful protests which were allowed
The de-funding of the police
Lock  downs and mandated inoculations
The blundered withdrawal from Afghanistan
I pray for more waves and for a large 
White swan upon whose back I may lay and
Then go out to sea, watch the sunset
The moon rise and then count the stars
Knowing that each one represents a soldier
Who gave his or her life for us and our freedom and
Then realize once more how we are giving
This all away for no good reason except the
Desire of “Good People” to control and
Keep the rest of us in an equal state of misery

Stanski
August 27, 2021 ^