the 500th anniversary of
the discovery of America
we ignored as though the
past had been devoured by
ambivalence & shame.
the millennium is less
easy to deny.
we offer no public words
of perspective or possibility.
time is a bad dream.
we no longer believe in angels.
we are the heirs of
2000 years of connected
human endeavor. we ex
pect our lights to light &
our cars to start & our
cell phones to reach across
continents.
when such good fortune is
experienced, we want nothing to
change.
progress is unnecessary.
what if we awake &
our computers fail?
we secretly fear
technology.
we are 4 billion
individuals, wearing mass-
produced pants & shirts &
sneakers of self-expression.
we’re on our own.
we do not trust in God.
we do not trust eachother.
love has abandoned us.
we have no obligation to
the past & wash our hands of
all responsibility.
we want to remember nothing.
we care to be thankful for less.
terror is our nightmare.
guilt is the father of our dreams.
conscience is dead.
what is the difference between
pride & vanity?
we are quickly forgetting
how to be civilized.