We never look up anymore…

i.

Don’t be fooled
by the cul de sac
the gingerbreading
the German engineering

you can’t see into empty
corners from manicured
lawns, intricate patterns
cobwebs on ceilings
closets bursting

discarded hopes, cluttered
basement memories
undisturbed dreams stashed
in attic floorboards, insulated,
keeping you warm

enough
to forget.

ii.

Reality streams
on second screens,
on-demand
on second thought…

it’s all slipping through
our fingers

our demands petty,
short-sighted, contradictory
there are no secrets
in the archives,
only the stories

we memorize
will be remembered.

We never look up anymore,
too busy amusing ourselves
to death.

Written by Guy LeCharles Gonzalez

Guy LeCharles Gonzalez is the Chief Content Officer for LibraryPass, and former publisher & marketing director for Writer’s Digest. Previously, he was also project lead for the Panorama Project; director, content strategy & audience development for Library Journal & School Library Journal; and founding director of programming & business development for the original Digital Book World.