Guinea Pigs

For Phillip Larkin

We're still rolling down the long slide!
Our windows high and out of reach!
Culture, Science, New Technology
Still developing forever and ever
And ever! As the vermin turn to quip
"Isn't it amazing?" And "Oh the times
We live in now!" While the endless sky
Is empty, not, for we've erected
Satellites to mend our needs,
Rocket-ships and Investigative
Probes that burn up accidentally
Upon re-entry(rendering them a waste of time).

But back on Earth our smart phones jam,
Our GPS can't find the block,
People die in car wrecks still,
Our cells grow cancer, heartbeats stop.
Airplanes crash, and are refined
For, and only, as a swift result.
We shell out cash for top-line stuff
But need a new when one grows old.
Automotive recalls, Toys
With lead paint for our kids,
Laptops catch on fire and
Coffee cups have flimsy lids.

Yes, isn't it amazing now!
Cover faults with leaves of fig,
That, with all advances come and gone,
We're still no more than guinea pigs.

Author's Note

A response to Phillip Larkin's poem "High Windows": http://famouspoetsandpoems.com/poets/philip_larkin/poems/14514

Reviews

[emmajoy]

Seems we're actually standing still, counting money tho there's little of worth to spend it on; all the good stuff's gradually dying, all that remains are the bits that'll break down, fall apart, then, rot; and in the meantime we don't see our world's falling apart - and of course, that doesn't matter, we won't be here to feel or see it, will we! (That's as cynical as I can be) Your post says far more than my few words, and of course, far more eloquently. You write of emotions and ethics, then swipe them away with the mention of our throw- away society, the endless nothingness, the lack of soul value..

[LinBin]

As we say in the east end of London.....you've written a blinder mate!!! Which means....its really good x lol

[Muse]

Cover faults with leaves of fig
I never really looked at technology this way. I liked your humor and your unique use of anaologies. A very clever write Mike!

[Christina May Shanaberg]

Cover faults with leaves of fig

We should have fig trees growing everywhere. Nothing in our world really changes, just the things and what importance people give them.

A wonderful write, indeed!

[Stammers]

Nice conclusion. I liked this a lot, great idea.

'Coffee cups have flimsy lids.' - oh no, the horror!

[Neva Flores Smith - Cha..]

and we think we are so smart.......oh my goodness Mike I can't get past the line about laptops catching on fire, mine better not. :( Excellent piece!

[Joiedevivre]

Ha! fantastically ironic write, what fools we are regressing in our glossy but crumbling society. Brilliantly depicted!!

[Kenneth The Poet]

I guess this poem explains why Christianity still exists. It basically says that humans are chunks of excrement that cannot change their basic make-up. It might also explain why atheism exists too.

[Tina Kline]

This is great, it so true. We are nothing more than guinea pigs. We humans are smart but not smart enough to stop killing ourselves and the planet. Everything we create is killing us from medicine, food and things we create to make our lives easier and more fun. You did a wonderful job on this.

[Poetic Beauty]

The ending of the this poem fits this piece well and I you have me thinking about all our wonderful advances yet there are so many great issues that need solved. Thought provoking write.