Automatic

Two little girls,

Shuffle to the table.

Choosing cereal is easy,

But choosing shoes is not.

I find this cup of coffee

Darker than yesterday.

These snarky ceramic sentiments

Cannot guide my compass today.

I may not say

“We don’t use the word hate.”

I might not utter

“You have to learn to share and compromise.”

I shouldn’t even considering mentioning

“Everyone has different interests.”

So I point out

“Follow your teacher’s directions.”

And then out shoots

“Remember, any phone can call 911.”

And while I’m at it I fire off

“If something happens, be brave, and know I love you.”

This one is always the silencer.

And I realize I don’t know how much longer I can live

Automatic.