Rough Side of Town
Law abiding citizens nurturing our safe community
we live in a universe of rules written by pencil pushers
Seeming offensive to some and boring to others
gives birth to an underground parallel world out there
Somewhat of a by-product off on a tangent that’s gone astray
it’s the night to the day of our structured monochrome society
Onto shady streets the law of the jungle reigns supreme
its pulse has a raw might that’s visceral and palpable
Theirs is a culture that speaks a foreign language
dark entities settling differences with machine guns
In some concoction of violence chaos and survival
forever keeping score their way etched in blood
Drugs and overdoses every day in every way familiar
jiving on the wrong side of town where we won’t visit
Intertwining realities as normal to them as ours to us
we can’t relate to theirs and they can’t to ours
In their brutal arena the law is an eye for an eye
their justice is savage merciless and unforgiving
Empires built on vengeance of what you want you take
violence begets violence hopefully our worlds never collide
We try to stay blissfully ignorant in our little familiar realm
there’s no reasoning with rebels once the line is crossed
At least in this world our corruption is underhanded
and it’s much easier to maintain the illusion
with our manicured lawns and white picket fences
AP: Honorable Mention 2026, Honorable Mention 2020
Submitted on June 24, 2020 for contest OPINION sponsored by KAI MICHAEL NEUMANN - RANKED 9TH
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