he suddenly woke up

my very leftist

and woke,

but lifelong friend, Brandon,

who is now a vegan,

marches religiously

with the women

on pro choice days

down at the mall.

he wears a pink

head band,

and the t-shirt with

Joan of Arc

on the front.

he throws copies of Tom Sawyer

into the bonfire

and helps push

over statues of Abe Lincoln.

he believes in twelve genders,

separate bathrooms

for all,

and swears

that crime is down,

the economy is

good.

he's all for an open border

and lying

in the street to protest

big oil, or the Israeli war.

it's getting harder

and harder

to be friends with him,

and him

with me, as i cut into

another piece

of charred, but

medium rare meat.