Afraid
Afraid of my knees buckling out,
Afraid of a humpback whale with a cavernous snout.
Afraid of conditioning after shampoo,
Afraid of pineapple chunks chew.
Afraid of a venomous snake’s bite,
Afraid of growing to towering height.
Afraid of shaving skin too bare,
Afraid of closeness caught in a stare.
Afraid of seeds stuck deep in my teeth,
Afraid of the red wet line underneath.
Afraid of french fries that keep me fat,
Afraid of diving off the building to splat.
Afraid of exploding gasoline tanks,
Afraid of the sun’s no thanks.
Afraid of basements dark and cold,
Afraid of patterns that never unfold.
Afraid of cracking up surrounded by padded walls,
Afraid of mosquitoes sucking on my balls.
Afraid of intolerance and night sweats,
Afraid of hatred the world forgets.
Afraid of downtown karma kneeled,
Afraid of secrets revealed.
Afraid of living in silence and wrong,
Afraid of regrets that hum like a song.
Afraid of learning to play guitar,
Afraid of leaning in close at the end of the bar.
Afraid of warm apple pie,
Afraid of dressing up in black tie.
Afraid of bald eagles saluting a false leader,
Afraid of bending over to witness my bleeder.
Afraid of removing all my worn-out clothes,
Afraid of a praying mantis tiptoeing behind my toes.
Afraid of the cat’s meow,
Afraid of the abysmal ocean beneath the bow.
Afraid of tempting the hand of fate,
Afraid of asking her out on a date.
Afraid of frequent reinvention,
Afraid of temperature apprehension.
Afraid of walking the path reversed,
Afraid of staircases steeply cursed.
Afraid of the steam locomotive at rapid speed,
Afraid of horses that thunder with greed.
Afraid of flights missed in a blur,
Afraid of clocks that always stir.
Afraid of corners that twist and turn,
Afraid of fighter jets that dive and burn.
Afraid of invasions by silent infections,
Afraid of immune system insurrections.
Afraid of asking the growing cancer,
Afraid of receiving the definitive answer.
Afraid of not living beyond midnight’s moon,
Afraid of falling too soon.
Afraid of turning age eighteen,
Afraid of a shattering orgasm scream.
Afraid of constant consensual intercourse,
Afraid of riding her like a cockhorse.
Afraid of butter on inner thighs,
Afraid of gouging out my blue eyes.
Afraid of letting go of my semen,
Afraid of the big bad wolf demon.
Afraid of taking it in the anus hole,
Afraid of chewing my teeth whole.
Afraid of sticking my finger inside,
Afraid of confronting professor’s pride.
Afraid of her clever extortion,
Afraid of spreading her legs for an abortion.
Afraid of the birds and the bees,
Afraid of schoolgirl skirts cut above the knees.
Afraid of synagogue’s sermon,
Afraid of crotch-sized vermin.
Afraid of the ceaseless masturbation,
Afraid of my own castration.
Afraid of the heroine’s yesterday,
Afraid of inevitable decay.
Afraid of church service at fault,
Afraid of pillars of dead sea’s salt.
Afraid of creating my rejected art,
Afraid of giving up my somber heart.
Afraid of catching on fire,
Afraid of burning alive as I expire.
Afraid of reading psalms,
Afraid of nails driven through my palms.
Afraid of growing up to be homicidal,
Afraid of my best trait being suicidal.
© 2025 David Greg Harth
25.06.05.10.29.59@130BklyNYC