Mental Illness

I both like and hate
to hear those words:
Mental Illness

How could I ever explain
what those two words mean to me?

I can talk about psych wards
in the U.S.A.
(with Doctors, nurses, and counselors
of various sorts,
art therapy and often ridiculously good cuisine)
full of terribly bizzare or deformed
and also eccentric, different,
or fairly normal people
in a time of crisis
(and so many of us some combination)

I could talk about stigma and prejudice,
harsh but often necessary medicines
(usually in unnecessarily high doses) :
or discuss the relief of some relief
from harsh realities of the world
hard and hungry city streets

But that's not truly it:
there are things I can't
or won't bring myself
to think or write about,
not everyday
not for just anyone to read...
and judge or cringe

It's a different world,
a scary but wondrous magic theatre:
NOT FOR EVERYONE

So watching TV or at the coffeehouse,
I don't always like to hear those syllables
even less insane or "psychotic,"
but I've found that
if we're going to seek or maintain sanity
in this sometimes crazy world

if we're going to be successful
or honest as human beings,
it's not so bad to talk about it
to say the words:
"Mental Illness"