I win my bread
One day at a time
The stock market
At the grocer
In the unemployment line

I work my tail to a nub
Rub it in and rub it off
The grunt work is a mindset
The leveling never comes

What if the roles were switched
You the mom and me the dad
What if you had to stitch
What if I took jobs you had?

What would that look like?
Me as a man?
As masculine as I am.
Would I scratch my ball for hours
Remotes dangling from my hands?
Or would I insist on mowing the lawn
When it’s hair is only inches
Would I huff and puff and eat raw meat
While you were doing dishes?

What if I wasn’t allowed to feel
All of my emotions?
Instead of wavering, hovering, floating
I’d only be one of four things
Happy or sad, angry or mad
We don’t get any choices
Put in our boxes
Closed up with tape
We can’t make any noises

Stop inconveniencing my time with your whines
You’ve had enough time to do too many tries
You should be farther
You have the stuff
You should have gotten the degrees
Buffed yourself up to snuff

So why does it feel like I’m being forced
To a trough I left, practically divorced?

Do I want to go there
Is the water still drinkable?
Or is it filled with stuff unthinkable?
Rotting maggots, fruiting flies
Once in corporate my soul might die.

Or will it flourish while the others I nourish?
Can I share my learnings to help with earnings?
Will I speak out loud but not too proud
On how we can lift the system’s shroud
The covering of flaws, the medical errors
My curiosity spooks with cares

I want to see more of that world
To fly the wall, to tree the squirrels.
I need smore time
No marshmallows required
If you think I’m wrong
Just say, “You’re fired.”
I’ll go back to my hole, I’ll ignite my fancies
I’ll make it worthwhile, I’ll learn new dancies
But please don’t make me present the metrics
My head is pounding and I’ve got no hat tricks.