James Mclain Poet Free verse

how to stay alive amongst people who have guns and wear masks

how to stay alive
amongst people
who have guns
and wear masks
is like learning
how not to drown
when the river
runs red and fast.

they call themselves
ice, law, enforcement,
cowards with letters
stacked up like badges
and pride thicker
than bulletproof glass.

they say
if Floridians wear a mask
in the commission of a felony
their sentence can be doubled —
but not them.
no, they get to mask up
in the name of law
and shoot first,
ask questions later
like kids with war toys
and bad jokes.

you keep your eyes open
and your back
against concrete walls
listening for sirens
not for angels.

don’t step
when they tell you
don’t step.
don’t breathe
when they tell you
don’t breathe.
don’t live
when they tell you
who should live.

there’s no handbook
for this kind of survival.
no pamphlet
from the county office.
just you,
your heartbeat,
and the stubborn notion
that being alive
doesn’t mean waiting
to be killed by a man
wearing a mask
and a 007 license to kill.

keep walking,
keep talking,
and remember
their bullets are loud
but they’re not destiny.

stay alive
by refusing to shrink,
by telling your own story
louder
than their sirens
and their lies.

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