Anterior Realities

Once I thought to take a trip

To the farthest reaches of my mind

Setting sail on a sea of reds and blues

I eddied off to see what I would find

In order to fulfill my pipedream

I huffed a couple more tokes

I tried to pop the childproof cap

From the pharmacy containing the hoax

I stepped foot over the gunwale

Of the boat of reality

Testing the swirling depths

Of an ocean of veniality

I turned a Styrofoam octagonal corner

Round it discovered a little twist

My personal road to enlightenment

Was just a meandering path in the mist

Another lungful of altered perception

Just a few more little pills

There I was in Never Land

Prepared to seek my thrills

It would not bother me to discover

Chrysanthemum elephants on the vine

I would be perfectly happy to hitch a ride

On a wagon train swinging on a vine

But in my deliciously lavender anterior space

I didn't find anything quite so mundane

Instead a sentient, whirling, riotous chaos

Wankled along each bustling empty lane

The transparent ten foot rabbit

Hopping on his cloven hoof

Shot from a gossamer rubber band

Disappeared thru a hole in a roof

A chipmunk three inches long

Covered with a leopards darkling spots

Pranced by in her purple tutu

Singing Hungarian and eating tater tots

I espied a large cracked egg

Sitting upon his wall

He rolled down in front of me

Most certainly he did not fall

Removing a hinged portion of his shell

Egg harnessed me to his yolk

I plowed a field of oats and fish

As he admonished me to get the joke

Throwing off the yolk of oppression

I bolted through a field of clover

There the poppies put me to sleep

Until awakened by a sedentary drover

His suit was of blue rice

Glued upon a cotton quirt

Upon his collar was a flower

With a bulb to make it squirt

He lifted my head to his bulb

And said “Now take a drink”

It gave me a jolt of energy

But tasted like musty mink

I thanked him for the refreshment

And wondered what it was

He said “Don’t you worry none”

“I skimmed off all the fuzz”

He asked about my daily world

We discussed the meaning of life

Is the basic human condition

Always to be full of strife?

What if we took all the guns

And dropped them in the ocean?

Would that possibly lower crime?

Is that a feasible notion?

If the fat cats on their hills

Had concern for their fellow man

Perhaps the milk and honey

Would cover once more our land

What about the many religions

So prolific in our cultures?

Are they all just feeding on us

Like dark and hungry vultures?

Maybe if we followed the dictates

Of those religions we profess

Instead of hate we'd espouse our love

And have no sins to confess

Rather than sow the seeds of dissension

Perhaps instead plant a kiss

Then from the crops we treasure

Harvest a love that’s not remiss

He asked me if I truly thought

Human nature could be redeemed

Can love and peace ring the world

With the race of man all teamed?

Piercing his transparent forehead

I searched throughout his mind

He didn't know the answers we sought

But taught me in seeking to find

I gazed at the hills in the sky

Peaceful clouds upon the land

Suddenly from a suspended rock

Jumped a quarteted feline band

With a discordant bang of cymbals

They sprang upon my friend

Tongues coated with amphetamines

His hair they began to tend

Tails dipped in aftershave

Beard they coaxed to flat

Claws distended in his hair

Skull bumps they pushed and pat

Drover gave a little screech

Then turned the other cheek

“Preen upon my frame” he said

“Should it bring the peace you seek”

A neon-dark orange hound dashed up

A rifle inside his pouch

“This is the final answer” he said

“For all mankind I vouch”

Tousling a floppy hooked ear

I took the rifle out

He nuzzled at my gunhand

Growling at cats with a pout

I hefted the gun and held it

It's weight real in my hand

Is death the only thing solid

In this imaginary land?

Striking a point towards the cats

Preening upon my friend

Hound said “Drover only hurts himself”

“So shoot and it will end”

When no answer was forthcoming

Hound fixed me with a cross-eyed glare

I spread my hands and dropped the gun

Peace between us it's only fair

Fido stood and licked his paws

Patting his wrinkled tux

Picked up the shiny new rifle

And said "This here really sucks"

Lifting the bright steel barrel

He rammed it into my soul

I sat bolt upright and found myself

Lying naked at the edge of the knoll

I glanced over the rock strewn top

Shivering at such a near miss

Below me waved fields of wheat

But narry a single planted kiss

I thought about the egg

Chipmunk, cats and dog

Lonely philosopher drover

Wandering in the fog

A quartet of musical felines

Happy a man to groom

Hound by his master taught

Only to send them to a tomb

Shaking my head I rose

From my spot upon the slant

Wrapped only in my dignity

I headed home a kiss to plant

My first kiss I planted upon a neighbor

Gazing in shock at my unclothed state

She slapped me for my familiarity

I assume we’ll not have a date

While waiting for police to arrive

I poured a good stiff drink

Heading to the bathroom

I dumped the pharmacy down the sink