Flag

When I grow up, I want

   to be a flag, so people

      will pay more attention to me

         than to issues of real life.

      Don't you think that will make

   me feel special, if not powerful?

I'll touch people's deepest emotions,

   inciting more reaction and less action.  

      I'll wave and wave in every wind,

         without regard for either

      the direction of its flow

   or the damage it unleashes.

I'll be the distraction by which

   magicians and politicians alike

      perpetrate their illusions,

         as all attention centers

      on my colors, design, and

   position on the pole.

See me waving?

   See them bowing? 

      See others hating?

         I'm large and in charge,

      and nobody seems to realize it.

   Genuflect, and carry on.

© 2015 Todd Jenkins