Driving 
on the freeway
I always keep an eye out
for the police
even though
I am not doing anything
wrong
(most of the time)
even when I’m not speeding
I look for them
behind the bushes
and billboards
I look for them waiting
and hiding
and trying to trap us
or weaving through
the traffic
like killer fish
and I wonder
why it is,
why is it
that my heartbeat quickens
when I see them
our so-called servants
of the law
our protectors
especially
when the red & blues flash
or the siren blares
even if not at me …
I really wonder
if they,
the enforcers
are there to help,
why do I fear them?
Is it a guilty conscience
or is it a gut response
knowing
power corrupts
and none of us
are truly safe?
But in all fairness,
there must be some good ones
out there,
right?
No group of people
are all evil,
not even the Klingons
but, nevertheless,
I keep my rearview mirror
polished.

Bradley Mason Hamlin