settle in for a long ride
 
a sunny cold day
 
the day before the
first day of winter
 
the day before the
holiday blues settle
in for a long ride
 
now as i grow older
i know that ride will
get as close to death
as possible at times
 
you learn not to fear it
 
enjoy the tension
 
the pensive delight
of closing the circle
 
the only thing that
is truly guaranteed
---------------------------------------------------------
still with her mask on
 
listening to a conversation
in the waiting room while
staring at this beautiful
black woman
 
wondering what she
looks like naked
 
of course, my imagination
does that but still with her
mask on
 
you know, safety first
and all
-----------------------------------------------------
having never learned the lessons
 
the relentless agony
of the end of life
 
holding on for
a few moments
 
the last laugh
 
the last kiss
 
the last nibble
of glory
 
having never learned
the lessons of all those
wise fucks that came
before
 
the urgency of now
is fleeting
 
taking advantage of
every second is nearly
impossible in this world
 
where you are bombarded
with an endless onslaught
of shit
 
disposable,
as is everything
---------------------------------------------------------
anxiety and dread
 
just enough snow
to fill the old ladies
with anxiety and
dread
 
i'm the asshole that
wishes for enough
to make driving
an adventure
 
such is life
 
no one is ever
really happy
-------------------------------------------------------
that whiff of death
 
i remember cutting
through the woods
on this old trail
 
i remember learning
to ride a bicycle and
suddenly taking
advantage of that
freedom
 
i remember finding
this old trash bag
one day in the
woods
 
it smelled
 
my friend and i told
his father about it
 
he went over with
us to open it up
 
a dead dog
 
that whiff of death
still sits in the front
of my brain all these
years later
 
i know one thing
though
 
it made life on the
farm pretty easy
 
my nose could smell
a surprise long before
my eyes could be
shocked

J.J. Campbell (1976 – ?) is old enough to know better. He’s been widely published over the last quarter century, most recently at The Black Shamrock, Terror House Magazine, Cajun Mutt Press, Beatnik Cowboy and Horror Sleaze Trash. You can find him most days on his mildly entertaining blog, evil delights. (https://evildelights.blogspot.com)