The Cynic

Your brother
mocks, drinks, states the obvious, ruins, stumbles, covorts,
dishes, slings, gets it wrong.
He misses, time and again

And yet this is your mentor, your rock
Crumbling Plymouth, you are fettered
to a contradiction
by birth order

His meanness and competitive compunction
Overwhelm me
When I encounter it
His interpretation of my motives

Excise this interloper
That Mom and Dad
Donated to your cause
Figure out who you are, then you'll see him

A gnat in your garden.