Five Sequential Devolutions

1) Freedom

the world is under arrest
and people, once arrested
play the roles of criminals
plotting in their confinement

great stories of redemption end
with the innocent freed
oppressors hopelessly defeated
cleansing rain and remote sunsets

redemption is not the American story

like prisoners who sell cigarettes
for sexual tricks and future favors
we play the game of the institution
while dreaming of freedom

2) Birth

I was never born

in the middle of the night
thieves stole me from a grave

woke me up

and placed me crying
on a stranger's doorstep

3) Death

I'll never die

America is my bones
forged of destiny manifest

onward and upward
sea to sea

4) Cartography

when I learned to write
I took snapshots of letters
and pasted them on the page

my first book glowed
under neon lights

when I drew maps
my satellite fingers
grasped the earth
to smear on electronic walls

flickering
these maps
complete

5) History

when I am old
and settle in
to retire

history
will decide