ANTHEM by Sam Cha
US PRETEXT / US PRETENSE / US ORDERLY sky cleared up open concept equidistant field of fifty SEPARATE EQUAL STARS very CLEAN very TIMELESS STARS and STARS and STARS in the night STARS and BARS wine bars iron bars crow bars to jimmy open NIGHT scarred by IRIDIUM eye by coal black fiber / US clean COAL / US COAL COLOR = DIRT
US JESUS IS MY CO-PILOT / US GOFUNDME IS MY DENTAL INSURANCE / US get PARANOID / US palm RED PILL ROHYPNOL / US say JUST IN CASE / US matte black case for GLOCK / US clean your GLOCK / US stop all the clocks / US is my heart beating too fast or too slow / US FIELD STRIP / US STRIP SEARCH
US running scared running on DUNKIN running on FUMES / US shattershale / US heard it through the PIPELINE / US nervous / US afraid to open envelope of MEDICAL BILLS / US POINT FINGER / US go POSTAL / US figure ain’t no problem can’t be solved with duct tape zipties KY crowbar some good old fashioned US STICK-TO-IT-IVENESS / US pull up NETFLIX
US watch TWITTER FACEBOOK INSTAGRAM SNAPCHAT INSTAGRAM VIMEO TWITTER YOUTUBE / US say US OR THEM / US hinge POTUS like revolving door / US POTENT / US take BLUE PILL / US BIG STICK / US fear fear itself unravelling / US CENTURY / US CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS / US PORTENTS / US COLONY COLLAPSE / US CORAL BLEACH / US WHITE NOSE FUNGUS / US MADE IN CHINA / US BUILD WALL / US turn away
US order food from AMAZON / US DOLLARS to SAVE THE RAINFOREST / US adjunct at five colleges to pay for gas to adjunct at five colleges / US look in mirror sidle up to HOT BITCH NOT QUITE A NINE EIGHT MAYBE EIGHT FIVE MAKES US FREEZE UP STAMMER MAKES US ROCK HARD / US roll joint / US get quietly stoned
US LICENSE AND REGISTRATION PLEASE SIR / US buy ICED TEA / US buy BLACK AND MILDS / US SPIN WATER GUN cowboy style / US STEP OUT OF THE CAR PLEASE SIR US DO NOT REACH FOR YOUR POCKET DO NOT FUCKING REACH FOR YOUR POCKET / US search MOST SATISFYING VIDEO ON YOUTUBE
US search SEXY REDHEAD MILF FUCKED BY BIG BLACK COCK / US say NOT GUILTY / US search for STEPMOM WALKS IN ON HOT TEEN / US searches for MANHATTAN SEA LEVEL 2030 / US say you’re blocking MY SUN / US go to HOT YOGA / US HAVING A COKE WITH YOU / US in desperate need of RARE EARTH
US TRASH VORTEX / US TURTLE ABDOMEN SQUEEZED INTO HOURGLASS BY SIX PACK RING / US SIX PACK ABS / US HOURGLASS FIGURE / US NEVER FORGET / US CIVIL WAR WAS ACTUALLY ABOUT STATES’ RIGHTS / US NO BLOOD FOR OIL / US THERE WILL BE BLOOD
US FIRE AND FURY / US NOW I AM BECOME / US SELFIE IN FRONT OF HIROSHIMA MEMORIAL / US SHOCK AND AWE / US SELF-FILMED SPEECH in GAS CHAMBER / US ASS TO MOUTH / US RECTAL FEEDING / US DON’T TREAD ON US / US DON’T FUCK WITH TEXAS / US search which is taller mushroom cloud or Olympus Mons
US search HOW TO IMPEACH / US INSTAGRAM peach / US throw away peach / US ASK NOT / US bomb back to STONE AGE / US search WHICH KOREA GOOD KOREA / US HUMAN BIO-DIVERSITY / US GET YOUR HANDS OFF OF ME YOU DAMN DIRTY APE / US COLD DEAD HANDS / US such small hands / US WHAT ABOUT THE CHILDREN
US YOU WILL NOT REPLACE US / US GOD LOVES US / US put on BOB DYLAN song / US will know their own / US IT’S A FREE COUNTRY / US THIS LAND IS MY / US AMERICAN SPIRITS / US WOODEN INDIAN / US YOUR ENGLISH IS SO GOOD / US WHERE ARE YOU FROM / US / a US is a US is a US / when I say US you say A / when I say us you say nothing / US / US / US / Us? / us— / us.
Sam Cha was born in Korea. He earned an MFA from UMass Boston. A winner of two Academy of American Poets prizes and a St. Botolph’s Club Emerging Artists Grant, his work has appeared in apt, Anderbo, Better, Best New Poets, Boston Review, decomP, DIAGRAM, Memorious, Missouri Review, Rattle, RHINO, and Toad. He’s a poetry editor at Radius, and his collection, American Carnage, was recently published by Portable Press @ Yo-Yo Labs. He lives and writes in Cambridge, MA.
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