Worse Than Usual -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

By Dick Eiden

Dick is a poet, attorney, and political activist living in Vista, California.

Worse Than Usual

​It’s slow and go on the eastbound 78
police activity on the shoulder 
east of Sycamore and lookie-loos
making conditions worse than usual.
 
Police activity on the shoulder
maybe an accident or drunk driver
making things worse than usual
for drivers struggling to survive.
 
Maybe an injury accident or drunk driver
with a rap sheet and suspended license -
struggling with two jobs and children 
needing a parent at home.
 
A rap sheet and suspended license
and pretty soon you lose one job and 
children needing a parent at home
have a home no longer.
 
Soon you lose one job to a robot named 
Joseph for the Patron Saint of workers 
who have a home no longer, and those 
who die in the arms of Jesus.

Named patron saint of workers in 1955, 
Joseph now a soldier in another war
because he died in the arms of Jesus, May 1st
is now the “Feast of St. Joseph the Worker”.
 
Joseph now a soldier in the cold war, used
to lure faithful workers from May Day, the communist feast of workers since 1904 -
a feast that threatened to eat the rich.

​To pull faithful workers from May Day, Pope Pius XII doubled-down with patrons to derail
the feast that threatened to eat the rich 
and put the workers in the driver’s seat.
 
Pope Pius doubled-down with rich patrons,
now drivers drink between jobs they hate, 
police activity on the shoulder threatens
making everything worse than usual.



                                                                          Dick Eiden
                                                                       March, 2019