Sometimes my aunt would tell us
“Be grateful for the food you have,
kids are dying elsewhere of hunger”
and I was thankful,
so thankful.
We really do over-think this democracy thing –
give everyone something to eat and
something to p*** in
and they wouldn’t be so upset by
Laissez Faire.
I’d think about the kids in Africa or
in our own
town
dying just because.

There’s no reason for it
practically every person in the world
could give them something,
anything,
just something to chew on.

My uncle would tell me,
“Some kid in Africa would kill to have the meal
you have in front of you.”
My sincerity was often confused with sarcasm.
Please, mail it to them!
Send them the cereal in its plastic bag!
Send the beans,
the rice,
the meats
I beg of you!
Give it to the kid across the street,
who shows up to school every day
and survives off of the apple
I always give
him.

By the time I thought of all that, the food was cold and I was no longer hungry.