Trippin'

Down the Interstate, 

Stuffed in an SUV, 

A perfect suburban one. 

You shake your knees. 

Mom tells you to stop shaking. 

It’s 10 a.m., yet the brands of Frito-Lay have been selfishly consumed. 

Mom’s being the GPS. 

Dad’s hammering at her,  

Arguing about where to stop, eat, rest. 

TikTok, TikTok, TikTok, 

And Spotify, 

After you promised yourself to read that book  

Now lying dejectedly in your overpacked backpack. 

Ugh. Queasiness setting in.

Gotta use a bag,

Dad’s insistent on it.

The windows don’t help much with the vomit.

A sibling’s just staring out the car.

Dad’s not rich enough to buy in-car internet.

You join in after staring at your phone for hours.

Trees, oil refineries, billboards, foreign road signs,

Mountains, desserts, plains, fields,

Churches, tourist traps, shacks,

Barns, farms, military bases,

Lakes, bridges…

That’s not all.

But the list is exhaustive. 

Trippin’?

Probably.

That’s why people do it.