by Andrew Hilbert
he met with me to discourage
me from publishing
it takes away from writing
he used to write 300 poems a year
now he's down to 100
he talked to me about many things
and i couldn't help but feel
ignorant and bad
the health insurance thing
he said
where you have to buy it
even though you can't afford
it, that'll set me back
he said
it's like out here in california
you have to have car insurance
and i have the cheapest
just to be legal
so when they pull me over
i can point to my card
and smile
in an accident, i'm fucked
he said
you know?
in my blind youth
in my blind ambition
just to see the world changed
i did not know.
Andrew Hilbert lives and works in Orange County. He also edits Beggars & Cheeseburgers magazine.
_____________________________________________________