I learned the Pledge of
Allegiance
When I learned to write my name
Learned all fifty states
Like it was a game
Saw each President
And President elect
On a chart in my school
I could never forget
But lately I’ve seen
My country change firsthand
And a divided house
Just cannot stand
Each side is a bully
When they disagree
They lie to my face
Like I cannot see
When money went far
It now shrinks at the store
I keep getting less
But they keep taking more
My government use people’s illness
For capital gain
A Band Aid on a bullet hole
Is the name of the game
But when we ask for a cure
It’s too much of a pain
People say they ask for handouts
And just want to get ahead
When there’s clothes to be bought
And mouths to be fed
Capitalism’s the idea
But nepotism rules
All the big businesses
Have played us for fools
You try to get a job
You’re lazy they say
But AI is stealing
The positions away
My health care’s my
choice
It should only be mine
But what is covered
And what isn’t
Can drop on a dime
There’s civil unrest
And counties at war
But the citizens keep fighting each other
On Twitter and Keyboards
Each side worships their
candidate
Like they are a God
But to me
It all seems rather odd
Nothing gets done
In each four years
But the rich get richer
On Capitol Hill
Washington just isn’t
Playing by the rules
Whoever wins, we all loose
Liberty and freedom
Use to be what sustained
But now fear and
intimidation
Is the name of the game
We can’t keep going like this
I beg and I plead
But neither candidate
Can seem to agree.
You can slide to the right
You can slide to the left
But whatever your choice
It all leads to death.
Cody Carrera, guest poet, is a resident of Hayesville.