Inspired by the TV series, This Is Us

It starts
with a
nervous
breakdown
and ends
with a
cross country
road trip.

Do I remain driven
to the point of
achieving an
unreachable
perfection…

Or do I gorge
on my defenses?

Do I hold
myself responsible
for my lack of security?

One that is:
lost
charred
exhausted.

Could I find
that soul
connection?

Addictions
may one day
consume me,
but I will
be strong enough
to pull open
the lids
of a clear
orange
canister
and escape
from this pit
of prescribed
passion.

My time won’t exist

within a whiskey bottle
within a vodka bottle
within a lager bottle
within a cider bottle.

I won’t make it
a habit
to ache
intentionally,

But a
third of
my heart
aches
now that
dad is
buried
under
the glistening
stars of David,

Grateful that the dust
within his casket
was not a product of
rising flames

And grateful I don’t believe
in iconic representations
of the temporary damnation
I feel on this earth.

I will disappear one day
but best I not
plan for it

I’d rather not
live in a
state of
misery or
mystery.

For nobody
needs to
wonder
how
Jack
died.

Jack M. Freedman is a poet and spoken word artist from Staten Island, NY. His latest book, Seance, is available on Amazon. Visit him on Facebook.