cl-click
tsssk
a breath pulled through fire
and flower
diamond-dusted smoke
pulled
inward
d
o
w
n
-ward into viny caverns
of ichorous inhalation
the hold is deep,
long,
c-c-c-con-
vul-
sive—
calming—
con-
spir-
ring into a
pro-
longed
ex-
h
a
l
e
.
ka-
booooom—
time for a thought
to fucking mushroom
into cosmic telescopic view
as i sip on my non-alcoholic raspberry espresso brew
because alcohol is no longer considered safe
so i toke and watch the smoke
carry my anxieties away
and sip on my
thc tincture
and mush-
room
tea.
>ehem<
“Pardon me.”
shit, didn’t see them. smile. act normal. joint behind the back. fuck! they can smell—
“Dude, that smells so good. You mind if I have a hit?—
“Oh, thanks man!—
”Yeah, I can’t figure out why it was ever illegal either.
“Fucking government, right?
“Fucking government, right?
“For sure! Yeah, you too, have a nice one!
“Thanks for the toke.”
“Thanks for the toke.”
whew.
lucky me! that was fucking cl—
wait...what did she say
“why that was
EVER
il-
leg-
al”,
as in,
it is no longer llegal here!
duh, and i
have a med
card.
here
i thought i was unsafe,
just as unsafe i was
once told that
mary jane
was,
the
devil’s siren,
like a green fairy
that absinthe only wished it could be.
van gogh’s ear wouldn’t be missing
were his elixir this motherfucking green.
hehe
that was kind of funny,
but for real—
humor aside—
is this shit
safe?
fuck,
hell if know.
probably not.
then again, what the fuck is safe?
shit—safe?—
what does that word even mean?
that is as foreign of a word to me
as any damn word in greek,
even more foreign,
like a nun seeking coitus
In kodosh koinonia.
“Where the hell did that come from?!”
shit. ha! they looked. hehe. i said that aloud.
but, yeah, safe...
what is actually safe?
christ—nothing is safe.
not a single thing.
life is not safe.
from birth onward—not safe.
shit! safe is abstinence!
abstinence—
now there’s a twist on
“the only safe sex is abstinence”,
not because we want to save it for marriage...
as if marriage is safe...
but because we want to
keep our future seed safe from suffering
like we make our dishes
dishwater safe.
what could be safer than abstinence?
“Bring back the nuns!”
hehe! Damn i said that out loud again!
bring back the nuns indeed. hehe!
but even in abstinence
safety finds no shelter—
no safety net for safety—
not even abstinence
can alleviate
any of us
from the danger
driven our way
from cradle
to grave.
safe.
maybe heaven,
or even nirvana,
is safe, but if it is,
the
r
o
a
d
to it through life:
certainly not safe.
there is absolutely nothing safe about life.
life is a zero sum game
that has its way
until there is no more use,
then it trades you in for someone new.
“But they fucking tell you anyway, don’t they?”
“Excuse me, did you say something?”
shit, i’ve gotta stop talking out loud.
“Oh. Sorry, Just talking to myself over here.”
another long breath
the whispy spirit smoke
pulled inward once again—
x l d s.
the exquisite exhale e p o e
they really do tell you, don’t they?
don’t do this...
don’t do that,
you don’t want to be unsafe, that's right,
"safety first."
“oh,” they say,
“trust us with that information,
“we have to keep it safe.”
“we’re making this illegal,
“we’re taking that away,
“trust us, we know better.”
sure, “they” know better.
“they” want to keep us
safe.
for what?
to drone away for scraps?
to be divided with friends,
neighbors,
making enemies of family,
because we disagree on
who is the safest vote,
the one who will keep us
safe.
have we ever found that safety?
have the world’s leaders—
any one of them—
delivered
deeply the goods
that we’ve been sold?
fuck no.
Safety comes in waves of war,
where we hydrate our soldiers
with forever chemicals,
where we color coat our own
in agent orange
to make it safe for them to kill
or be killed,
whether it be in the sands of syria,
or on Elm St, anywhere USA,
a cocktail that delivers death
to those who fight to supposedly
keep
us
safe.
chhk
pfft
there, put it out.
wow, that was a good one.
time to go in and carry on.
I realize I may not be safe,
but you only live once and
i’ll take my chances.
© 2025 Tristan Robert Lange. All rights reserved.
-
Author:
Tristan Robert Lange (
Offline) - Published: March 29th, 2025 08:07
- Category: Unclassified
- Views: 14
- Users favorite of this poem: sorenbarrett, Cheeky Missy, Poetic Licence, Eugene S.
Offline)
Comments6
This one started from zero and continued to pick up speed as it plummeted off a cliff where the road was insanity and the fall was enlightenment. Yes this world's decisions based on statistics. What is safe the FDA decides based on how many out of a thousand die, Government decides war based on the chances of winning, business puts money down on the chances of profit and the gambler plays against the house that is guaranteed to win on percentages. Life is a zero sum game no one gets out alive and so why not enjoy the ride. Loved the format as well as it carries the reader along and the shuffled word explode from line to line made me think of cards being shuffled very creative. A fave
Thank you, my friend. I am glad the format and structure work. Yeah, I had fun playing with the word explode, trying to give it some motion. I'm am super stoked to hear it was effective. Thank you, as alway, Soren. Your time an astute analysis are always looked forward to and cherished, my friend! 🖤🙏🦇🐦⬛🦇
Hmm. Aka "safe" discussed herein at length, who doesn't take chances? At least the section of society from which I come forbade such experiments, until I dasn't come any closer than my profession forces me to do. Guess I prefers to take my chances with a ton of bacon and beef. What is far more fascinating to yours truly is the sheer coincidental timing of THIS pretty number and my own life, eerily. I never once considered while on the clock late Thursday that I'd be reading such a gorgeous tribute in a matter of hours. La dee. Superbly rendered with such charming effects the reader, unconsciously drawn in, takes a ride on the wilder side, dumped, head spinning, safely [hahaha] sans any clinging, damning odors, the imagery excellent and poignancy haunting with an unidentified note. Thank you for sharing.
Wow! I cannot proper express in words how much this means to me. If I could bottle it up and put it out on rainy, doubt yourself days, I would. But cherish this in my heart I shall. When I set out to write this, I had the idea of safety I wanted to explore. But I didn't just want to explore it, I wanted to give people an experience (one they may or many not have had before) as well as something philosophical to really explore. An experiential journey that leads somewhere substantive. Your analysis, my friend affirms that this was achieved and for that I am so thankful. I was not sure if this would land they way I hoped and I thank you so much for sharing with me your experience and journey through. As for the risks we take, you are right...we all do. So, I thank you again, dearest Missy, for your words. Again, I will cherish them forever, my friend! As for you, I pray your weekend rocks and that you get to enjoy some risky bacon and beef! 🖤🙏🦇🐦⬛🦇
Hahaha, you're too sweet, dear Tristan. Glad we're having fun while stretching our poetic wings.
Indeed! Thank you! 😊
Now my poem, but your ears may burn:
Ohhh F, F, F, and F
And furthermore F, F, F, and F
And so on for 5,846 verses.
Steady on there, says Fido to me. lol.
Are you trying to put out a joint there, Orchi? Here, let me help you: 😗💨🚬 🚭 There. That's better. Give Fido some 🥓 strips for me. They may not be safe, but he'll find them delicious for sure! 🤣 Thank again, friend, for stopping by and for engaging. Always look forward to it.
Wow that must of driving you insane writing this piece!!!, as you read it don't know why you find yourself going faster and faster and your heads going to explode in a fun way. The problem with what's safe and what is not, over here they are constantly changing there minds, you end up in a loony bin just trying to up with it all, really entertaining mind boggling read
Indeed. They change their minds here too...and it always boggles the mind, for sure. Thank you, my friend! Indeed, this drove me a bit insane and took me a bit of a while to write! I am glad it delivered. Much appreciated, my friend! 🖤🙏🦇🐦⬛🦇
You are very welcome, it was a fantastic write
😊🖤
"Safety comes in waves of war"...
Amen! Great write!
Thank you, Eugene! Your time and your thoughts are very much appreciated, my friend! 🖤🙏🦇🐦⬛🦇
I remember reading the fourth chapter of Jonathan Livingston Seagull where the author tells us what's coming, wrapped in the cloak of "safety."
I'm not good at reading longer pieces, but this one pulled me along nicely!
Excellent! Glad to hear you made through considering! That means a whole heck of a lot to me! In the cloak of safety, indeed! Thank you, so much, for your time and your thoughts. Much appreciated, my friend! 🖤🙏🦇🐦⬛🦇
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