An Ode to ‘Surface Pressure’

I, shoulder the loads until the day gets old, I’m sold

on the idea that good deeds are better than gold,

the surface pressure got me under it,

get the 5 donkeys off my back when the storms are straight thunderin’

I’m wondering who else relates to Luisa from Encanto,

squatting triple digits, 60-hours-a-week and damn, bro,

I’m holding it all up like a hydro-powered dam, so,

I dance it off, cycle it out, rhyme it down as I write this down-

David and Freddie said it best, I guess, folks,

Rest is just a luxury, and we’re all dead broke,

conditioned by society to hate to love ourselves

and pack donkeys on our back until our eyes twitch,

Capitalism is the pimp, and worker burnout is the main trick,

We have it so engrained that in order to hold grains

our bottom line has to show a gain for us to be worthy

Of just a few minutes when we can enjoy some fine wine

from the local Trader Joe’s and just vibe to John Coltrane.

But, under the surface, coin don’t define us, mane,

We forget how to breathe while pushing to succeed,

so, I take a page out of Luisa’s book and dance it out,

cuz creativity is the antidote that clears the clouds,

and, self-care is the activism of the masses now.

Resist the gas-lit guilt and take time for your health,

Find ways to not have productivity define oneself. – RSM