Three Poems by Mike Meraz

I smoke a cigarette
In a room where
It's not allowed.

I put up a sign
On a wall where it's
Not permitted.

I write a poem
In a style
That is looked down upon.

I am a criminal,
In a sense,

But the cops
Are wrong.

__________________________


The poets
On the edge
Are now
In middle class
Houses
Drinking
Coffee
No longer
Bad asses
Of the
Underground
But coddled
Socialites
Reading
To each other
At the
Latest
Open
Mic.

__________________________


I always dreamed
Of bridges
Not of tall buildings
Or of shotguns
But of bridges
At midnight
When no one
Is looking.