ON THE ROAD

Crawling Into Open Spaces

A poem about a baby Jack Kerouac

A David Cerny baby at the Palm Springs Art Museum. Photo and Photoshop edit by Mark Tulin

“Can you remember who you were before the world told you who you should be?
— Charles Bukowski

When I was a baby,
I wanted to get out of the crib
in the worst way —
but I would not cry for mommy
because I wanted to break out
on my own.

So, I stood up,
balanced on two wobbly legs,
held onto the rail with fatty fingers,
while my underdeveloped brain
planned the great escape.

I didn’t know where I would go
or how dangerous the world was.
But I wanted to take a road trip
like a baby Jack Kerouac,
to crawl in open spaces,
to see where all the noise
was coming from.

What’s more,
I wanted the adults to see me
as a worthy human being,
and not only an infant in Pull-Ups
who doesn’t eat solid food.