Dashboard blues

ringing in ears of the car crashed

country mile away from civilization.

The next gas stop sells prescription drugs, so, lean your head

against the wheel and try not to break down.

The backseat passenger screams of wanting to go home

and the body in the trunk -

you don't know what he's doing. The battery is definitely going to die

your child self stares out the window next to you

something in the tree line is moving [if something were to happen ...]

"nobody would find our bodies," it suddenly speaks and looks at you

the bars of the bird cage imprinted violently in its eyes. "you should have finished

the job years ago."

right - you tug at the ignition. If the engine explodes

you hope it'll burn everyone in this car and yourself and the trees

shudder at the thought of a forest fire

but will gladly bury you within their roots

they'll make you into a footnote

in a paper that claims lobotomy can fix people 'like you'

though really, they'd love to stab a spike into your brain.

The frogs jump over the windshield

and road kill reanimate just to put themselves in front of your car.

the body hits the floor of the trunk and wails to keep going

you're the driver. you have to keep driving.

To the lake where you'll dump his body -

maybe if you're lucky, there's a diving board to plunge from.