Go In

You exhort the poet on stage
to “go in.”  As in, dive deep,

into the darkness, while remaining
onstage and in the spotlight.

Welcome to the American expectation.
It doesn’t matter how divorced you feel

from the rest of society —
you are waving a fat and greasy flag

full of Freud, Oprah, Facebook,
and the red white and blue

at someone who might be an artist
or might not, but who you certainly want to be

your pet goat, your truth teller,
your beard, your hide-behind.

Stay home and try it next time with a TV
and a boatload of reality shows.

You’ll save money
and when you implore

whoever’s on the screen to “go in,”
the only downside will be

that it may be a hoarder you’re talking to
and there may be more in there than you wish.