Drowning In Pretense Poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar

There are some people,
Living in effective delusion.
Left over from a past to have had,
Reason to believe themselves...
Masters of fantasies.
Claiming to be 'this' and 'that'.
And inhabitants of places,
In which imitation replaced reality.

Still today,
With their noses up in the air.
And their quality of life,
Polluted by high taxes and incompetence.
Illiteracy and isolated ignorance.
They can not prevent themselves,
From drowning in pretense.
Nope.
To do so would cause them to admit,
A dependency on those they lie about...
Until they too chose to leave,
Such ignorance and stupidity...
Left openly displayed.
Behind.
With other proper etiquette of shown,
Seasonal nonsense.
Relied upon to go unchanged.
Where those of steady habits can be heard,
Bragging about a past...
Exaggerated to embellish,
What their ancestors had.
Hoping this attracts,
Visitors.
Trying not to notice the expense it is,
Keeping the 'old' updated with renovations.
While those living in the present,
Do their best to find excuses...
As to why so much emphasis,
Is placed on their past?
When the future...
No longer travels in wagons.
Pulled by horses and mules.
Adorning straw hats.

"Ssssshhhh."

-What's the matter?
Why do you whisper.-

"Your observations.
People here become easily offended.
Try not to be too specifically observant.
Pretend the entire town is a museum.
That's the only reason the people will feel,
Enthusiasm.
They love to talk about how things 'USE To Be'.
As if guardians of fossils."