Monday, December 21, 2015

BULLETPROOF VEST

by Marilyn Peretti



Bullet Proof VIP Suit Vest Concealable Body Armor NIJ IIIA 3A Size M Black at ebay


Is that what saves you,
covers you for any action,
prevents your death
despite bringing others
to the pavement
for no reason at all?
Do you put it on every
morning, proud that
it will conceal all the
ill you feel about the
man you know nothing
about? The bulletproof
vest is a mask, isn’t it,
a masquerade, a costume
under a costume, a license
to invite bullets and
exchange them, with only
you walking away. Here
in Chicago we know
about bulletproof vests,
we know about masks,
we know about helmets,
holsters, guns and batons.
We know about hidden
videos, banished records,
lies and lies and lies.
What we know little of
is restraint, respect,
patience, civility, truth.


Marilyn Peretti can't help writing poems about the current public issues. She lives just west of Chicago.