Mr. Africa Poetry Lounge!
D.U.I. (Driving Under the Influence of Him)
I know a shortcut just ahead
I'll probably take it
as I think back to a time
when I wasn't supposed to make it.
Sixteen years old, I lived with pain
invisible to all who knew me
there were mountains that were supposed to crumble
and the fire that was supposed to consume me.
I was on the plane that never crashed
lived near the lightning that never struck
it seems someone was looking out for me
long after I'd given up.
I was chastised by the actions of others
condemned by words that were never spoken
so how does an angel fly
once her wings have been broken?
I'm overwhelmed by my own thoughts
of a phenomenon that I can't quite explain
almost as if my body went on vacation
as I swerve from lane to lane.
Side to side with tears in my eyes
I'm driving with blurred vision
the brakes screech and the horn honks
two seconds short of a head on collision.
I'm looking in my rearview mirror
it all happened so fast
I pull onto the shoulder
as the sirens roared and the lights flashed.
He made me take a breathalyzer
even had me walk the line…
but he was searching for traces of a substance
that he would never find.
Yes, I was guilty of DUI
but it's not what you think
I was driving under the influence of Jesus
but I hadn't had one drink.
Written by Shinita Freeman
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