you must
stamp things, sign them,
count, subtract, categorize
when does it end?
can’t we just let it all go?

do what you want when you want?
wait–sign here!–now you can
at least, till the notary gets here
then you’ll need to be fingerprinted
have your blood taken, stool sampled
show ID and your good to go again

till the magistrate arrives, then they’ll
flog you, tickle you, and publicly heckle you
till the president comes
at which point you’ll need to lawyer up
to ask for a pardon
or lobby to ask for a revolution
backed by people who are tired
of stamping, signing, and counting
things for other people

they will overthrow the notary,
the magistrate, and the president

and replace them with new posts
with new names

who can’t wait to make those overthrown
start signing, stamping, and counting their things

while you create an excel inventory of it