I am Not Bubblegum

I am not bubblegum

You keep thinking you can just chew me as long as you want

But I burn your tongue and dissolve 

So you reach for new sticks wondering what's going wrong

Why I don't just expand and pop at your will

You'd probably have liked to suck my flavor dry then spit me out and deposit me hidden on the underside of someone's desk

Or maybe use me as vengeance 

Stick me in someone's hair or set me down on their seat

But I wasn't that tangible I did nothing you asked

I never said the things you hoped I'd say

I went straight for your DNA

Seeped into your bloodstream fast like flat champagne

And I lingered in your system each time

Set small fires in your body poured poison in your mind

But I'm not really quite like wine

No

You lose track of where the intoxication starts and where it ends

You can't fend it off with excesses of water the hangover barrels through you and leaves you dry

So you ask yourself why you can't stop reaching for more

You knew you couldn't get addicted to gelatin and sugar

You never thought taking a small taste would do you any harm

It never did with any of the others

You're wondering how this withdrawal could be possible

Well my package may have looked small and square

Maybe you found shiny wrappers inside and figured I'd do fine

Those wrappers weren't mine

More like decoys I put in place years ago when I retreated to the depths of my mind

If I'd really let you in you wouldn't have made it out alive

The poisons I dosed you with were kind

They didn't take much more than your time

You were blind taking bites out of whatever I handed you

A year goes by and now your asking for the poison you once knew

I'm telling you it's not what you think

I am not sugar I am not sweet I'm more like arsenic and you won't be able to get rid of me if you keep taking more

Say that's what you want but you still don't understand

Rubber bands and bubblegum don't begin to explain this

You can't catch me on the bounce back

You can't keep me in your pocket

I'll steal everything you have

So be glad it's over just be glad

 

 

 

This poem is about: 
Me
My community
Our world

Comments

Additional Resources

Get AI Feedback on your poem

Interested in feedback on your poem? Try our AI Feedback tool.
 

 

If You Need Support

If you ever need help or support, we trust CrisisTextline.org for people dealing with depression. Text HOME to 741741