is the world really flat?

is the world really flat?

 

 

so much straight jacket logic

the world is contorted into 

confined eccentricity

 

not the good kind

that makes poets

and painters

and such relevant things that last centuries

 

but the kind of instant gratification

and rubber room mentality

judgments and pills

ephemeral thrills

 

lasting impressions for as long as a night

where tomorrow the rooms will be empty

as if our minds took holiday

and we ended up one Frontal lobotomy

 

away from that fool's hill

we should have climbed

when we had the chance.

 

 

erin-cilberto

10/1/16

Reviews

[Norman 223]

This era of instant gratification is the result of technology moving too quickly. Considered thought, prudent decisions are now cast into the background, fostered of course, by the urge for material possession and profit. Is this year's I-phone really any better than last year's. It still spells out the same gibberish.
I think you have summed up the situation perfectly ,Jacob
N.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

thank you for your kind review, Norman.

j.

[Bala Gorthi]

I also share the same concern as you. Surprisingly all generations are succumbing to these ephemeral thrills. Once The Moon used to figure in poetry and he was the messenger for lovers. These days cell phones are the gods for lovers. Reversal is not possible.Times and the Technology have changed radically, so has human heart and its aspirations.
But I think, this phase is also going to be ephemeral. With people like you and others ( the kind you are referring in the poem), we still have a chance....
A very good write.
Thanks for sharing.........

[jacob erin-cilberto]

i hope we do...thank you for your words, Bala...

j.

[barleygirl]

Even tho I love your title, I'm also thinking there might be a hidden theme along the lines of: "have we really progressed all that much?" With so much constant noise & confusion from unbridled "wants" . . . maybe we aren't very far along on the path of truth & discovery . . . like we've regressed to times when there were glaring misunderstandings of the basic laws of nature. I love your word-crafting, as always, but especially I'm relating to your message.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

yes, we aren't as far along as we think---right on...
thank you, barleygirl.

j.

[aLittlePain]

Ephemeral indeed, like the gadgets we devote to much time to before they become landfill.
We're gluttons for instant gratification living lives with our social media lens on awaiting the next post.
I miss hand written notes, cards or letters..sigh the world is becoming increasingly insipid. A brilliant piece j. xo

[jacob erin-cilberto]

i miss those things, too, Rach.

thank you.

j.

[Lydia Shutter]

Singing "the fool on the hill sees the sun going down...." Life moves at a fast pace these days. I can remember when a fax machine was an invention everyone was talking about. But every bit of progress these days seems ephemeral....after all, who uses a VCR these days? Seems the world needs to have news 24/7 and we entertained constantly. Is anyone still thinking? sometimes I wonder. Good one, Jacob. Lydi**

[jacob erin-cilberto]

yes, you are so right...thank you, Lydi.

j.

[Lyn Anderson]

I just have this impression of exasperation with this world of false thrill and instant gratification. There is so much good that can come out of technology and progress, but it really is a double-edged sword.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

yes, it is a double edged sword, both sides cut.

thank you, KL...

j.

[W.k.kortas]

The final stanza puts me in mind of Chief Bromden's escape in One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest. A fine back-and-forth look at the conflict between the ephemeral and the eternal.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

and that expression on the face of Christopher Lloyd's character when he does!

thank you for your words, W.k.
j.

[redzone]

almost makes you want to jump on the first European space craft heading to mars or even further.... how far we have come in a regressive world Jacob... twitter has us down to 240 characters... soon it will be just grunts and howls .... we are devolving Jacob and the horror is that there is still the technology to destroy everything... hmmm wonder what this button does??? ;0)....

wanna go climb some fool's hill Jacob??? I think there is still a chance (okay slim) if you keep writing poetry...

redzone

[jacob erin-cilberto]

i appreciate your keen observations and wry humor, Curt...thank you...

as steven wright says "i'm moving to Mars next week, so if you have any boxes."

[forgotten_ghosts]

You are so right.We people nowadays especially my generation only experience instant gratification without even recognizing.
I'm still climbing away, searching for a place to stay and devoting my time to real gratification. Gratificaton does not come from the facebook "friends" you have got nor does it come from grades in school or assessments at work. Those are artificial or instant gratifications.
Very nicely done!

[jacob erin-cilberto]

thank you for your insightful review, forgotten_ghosts...

j.

[1VJ]

Instant gratification again, must be nagging at your gray matter. So it should be, I can't recall the last time I received a handwritten letter, or card for that matter, it's a crying shame. Sorry, I will never find a text message sexy or congenial.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

i have no cell phone, no texting...and i really miss letters...
thank you, Paloma...

j.