This New England

Here's a nice piece of work by my acquaintance Christopher Foss, a New Yorker

'State of Play'

By Christopher Foss

A year of this
and that, and before we know it,
lines streak our faces.
Telling the artfully arranged
mask from the real thing
is no longer the game it once was
for us sojourners veering now
so close to the road's edge
at every turn. And as we drive on,
the scenery on either side -
forests of recrimination, plains
of derring-do, pre-glacial remnants
of hope - grows opaque, as our attention
is drawn to the vanishing point ahead.

Day breaks
and that helps matters. Children
rustled off to school clutching
a beloved toy, secretly relish the routine
despite endless foot-dragging.
In the playground, playful yelps
impose a state of distraction
and this in turn begs the question:
distraction from what?
The main thing
is to hold the line against itself;
scan the digital persiflage, messages
in aim but not much else. Then:
look up from one's handheld
to acknowledge - or even admire! -
the state of play, new sights
along the road, and of course to locate
the vanishing point's reassuring shift
yet further up ahead.

Christopher Foss writes poems; he's plied his trade in advertising and corporate communications, but for several years now he has stated he "Will Work for Bud" if it also means helping companies with their social and environmental performance. He's done this kind of thing for the likes of IKEA and Coca-Cola.

 Tags  Christopher Foss State of Play

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