Highway Monster from Mean Reds by Laura Ann Singh

The highway is a monster

Is this the american dream?
All sound and violence, din and rage
the mythology that made us great
the lie that movement is better than stillness
that being gone is better than being here
that out there is freedom
On the Road was just a map
to a place everything looks exactly the same

The highway is a monster

This is my american scream:
We pack our anger for a sunday drive
guns and picnics
out to prove significance
dirt and oil and gas and everything we can’t replace
We rip it all up to run it all down
save 5 minutes, why should I have to wait
excess and speed and more and more and more

The highway is a monster

And I am just like them
angry hurried blaming and raging
forcing my way and feeling injustice
when someone cuts in line
has too much wine or stops suddenly
racing to no end, I need to escape
But I've got to use it to get away
I've got to ride it out to to get out of my head
I’ll just get in my car and drive away

The highway is a monster

• World
• Richmond