Right

I made all the right choices 
and I’ve always done what I should.
I’ve always been Responsible–
so Responsible it’s capitalized–
and this path I walk is straight and narrow,
one foot before the other 
like a tightrope.

I don’t know how to fail
and I never make mistakes.

And yet I long to strike a match
and burn myself a new path.
Make jagged, brutal cuts
across the unscarred face of my future,
like a lightning strike across the sky.
Something bold and unpredictable
no one saw coming.

I don’t know how to run
and I never learned to try.

The straight and narrow leads
down, mostly, into a warm, safe place
full of sugar-rot and sweet smells.
It’s a honey heaven for the Responsible,
and the right thing to do is put
one foot before the other
and run.