2013 -- 6.1 (Fall) Poetry

The Calm Serenity of Knowing

By William Hugel

 

Come and get it while it’s hot,

Come and get it while it’s hot

The orange bottles that will sink

you into the blissful

“I don’t give a fuck, let me be”

drudgery of what is to be

your high school career

 

Listen little boy

Listen little boy

I’ve got the solution for you

the solution that will set you free

from the crickets mumbling in your brain

when you sit in the classroom

and can’t look away from the

sunlight sinking in through window pane

that touches the stain on the carpet

where your teacher’s voice bounces off of

telling you to “pay attention Mr. Little Boy”

 

Don’t worry my man

Don’t worry, I’ve played this game before

And I know what’s best for you

A little brown pill for now, a little blue pill

for later until we move you up to the little white pill

that will put everything into persepctive for you

just remember to take this one in the morning

and this one at night and I promise you

I promise you that by the end of tonight

you will feel the calm serenity of knowing

what the hell you’re actually supposed to be

doing at that desk all day.

 

Trust me friend

Trust me, I know what you’re going through

and these little pills will help you

through the day and I know it’s going

to make it difficult for you to brave

the ocean of faces you’ll be surrounded by

every single day, but you must remember that

I know what’s best for you, better than anybody

 

Don’t listen to them

Don’t listen to the teachers

telling you to adjust your behavioral

patterns. Just take the little pill

and it will clear your brain of

the constant wind blowing leaf

blades and pinecones and crickets

mumbling across the way.

Take the pill to make it all go away.

 

Just listen to me

Just listen to what I say.

I’m your psychiatrist

I’ve got a degree in medicine and psychology

and I know that I don’t know what

you’re thinking because I’m not a mind reader,

but you know that I’ve got a degree that

lets me know your mind better than anybody, even you.

So just take the pill. Come back tomorrow.

I’ll be here for you. As long as you pay.

 

Bio: William Hugel is a student studying literature and creative writing. He has studied fantastic literature at State College of Florida as well as been involved in the creative writing club called Swamp Scribes, performing in public readings at the school and helping to organize creative writing events. He aspires to continue his studies in literature and creative writing at the graduate level as well as enter publication in fantastic fiction.