Poetry – Distraction – being driven to distraction by the shallowness of life.

It would appear to me that there are pressing issues that we should all become involved with.

A small number of people are setting a tone, guiding us down a path of growth and profit. This is devastating the planet.

Politics is not pointless. We are not impotent. We can make a difference.

This poem was written in response to the shallowness I saw around me – the distraction that prevented people from engaging with anything that had depth and meaning.

TV and fun can be worthwhile and expanding; they can also create airheads.

DISTRACTION

 

A fuck   A film

A smoke   a joke

A smash  some hash

A pill  a thrill

 

Is all it takes to distract you

To stop you from having to think

And life goes by

Outside your window

As you pour another drink

 

A grab  A deal

A leer  A feel

A Crash   A Bash

A Breath   A Death

 

Is all it takes to fill your mind

Like a tennis ball in a vacuum flask

Bouncing in your head

Disturbing nothing

So you don’t have to ask.

 

15.7.96  Opher