The Next To Go

hush
don't say it
the ears have walls
anything you say can
be used by others
in secret potions mixed
in old coffee cans
over sterno fires
in the back alleys of your mind

stop
keep silent
minds are terrible things
and someday someone
may actually use theirs
catastrophe in the making
when they find out you have
thoughts of your own
and they might be a little different

come
walk with me
take this urn filled with
the ashes of those who have
come and gone before you
climb up the highest peak
and lift the lid
scatter them with the wind
but keep their memories close within

if they find out you mourn them
you may be the next to go