and for a time we lived
       

like gods      we said water & there
was water

we said light      & there was light
so much light at any hour

photons harnessed & pressed
into service      the water was pure

except in certain neighborhoods
near the old factories & mines

the air was almost pure
except in certain neighborhoods

where it was poison      we wanted
for nothing      we had work

& we had play—amazing play—
actual plays on a grand scale

before town-sized crowds      there was
fresh fruit out-of-season

& sustainably-caught fish      our wish
was Siri's command

supply met demand so far as we knew
& if we lacked bread or wine

we were borne for more in cars
that kept our feet

from touching the ground      borne
so fast it felt like flying

& there was actual flying then too
there was always more more

in profusion      there was      yes      confusion
& general alarm

the usual armies clashing by night      wildfires
derechos      earthquakes      wars      cops

killing young black & brown men in the streets
& occasional curfews that taught us

to rise & retire with the light      we had bread
& circuses streaming endless new episodes

we had devices for everything      electric combs
& toothbrushes

robot vacuums      GPS      laptop panopticons
from which we viewed the world

at a great remove      aside from all that
birches silvered by moonlight

cherry blooms like a wedding      live oak & owls
blinking on telephone poles

our screens were a window & also a barrier
& shield      terror was distant

& noiseless unless the sound was turned on
commerce & culture & chaos rolled

like a benevolent tsunami across & through
our mostly green lands

we met in large groups then      & often
touching each other's faces & hands

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Copyright © 2021 Rebecca Foust All rights reserved
from New Letters
Reprinted by Verse Daily® with permission