I’m scared of people who drive like maniacs

down the freeway to wait

of people who don’t inhale

of not having children;

ten of them, and a wife

to do it

of toothpaste

tubes that say Do Not Swallow Contents

of cloning anything,

even if it may save the humans

of a God that would watch everything

I do

of not dying in New Orleans

of people who are scared

to drink moonshine from a Mason jar

with a peach floating in the bottom

of old people

and my own mortality

of losing my ‘freedom’

of failing

and succeeding

of helping mankind

that which is rich enough to afford it

then dying at their hands

of never seeing the Grateful Dead

again

of getting genital warts or herpes

of a government

that would infect its people with and AIDS

or addict them to crack

of white people

of anything cooked in a microwave

of people who use perfume

of people who won’t

shake their ass

of people who don’t know

about Mardi Gras but celebrate

Shrove Tuesday

of novenas said

of Bob Weir carrying the torch

or Phish becoming as big as the Dead

of homophobics

and racists be they white, black, yellow or red.

of Boston chicken that’s a little pink

in the middle or pork or steak tartar

of the oppression growing everyday

of how much my life changes

each day

(MORE)
of growing up

of my intelligence

of becoming my father

or loving like my mother

of going to the store

for rolling papers

of cops

courts

coke

candy

and work

of doing time

biding time

writing

rhyme and being called insane

of coming back

of getting out

of not having friends

of not being known

or seeing the sunrise

at the far side

of twenty-nine.