slip-sliding away…..

I see

a camera crew,

filming a truck-police chase.

 

I see

performers,

practicing their craft

outside the circus school in an abandoned park.

 

I see

suspended men,

washing the windows of those who are trapped in an office.

 

I see

gardeners at work,

watering the gardens outside the theatre.

 

I see

tall buildings

reaching up to the sky –

yet dwarfed by the mountain that sits overlooking this city.

 

I see

car dealerships

all over this place –

sales agents waiting to earn their commission,

new models waiting to be driven off the showroom floor

by another satisfied customer.

 

I see

students milling around

outside the technikon building,

not realizing these are the last of their easy days

for adulthood awaits them in a little while.

 

I see

the bank’s branded car

the print shop’s mural’d van

the courier’s enclosed scooter:

business as usual.

 

I see

council employees

going about their business,

members of the public

waiting their turn in long lines –

victims of drawn-out administrative processes

in the age of technological advancement.

 

I see

many things

outside this place I call ‘work’ –

yet I still wish to feel free of such average surroundings

for I spent many days in a place much more beautiful

in days of sun

and struggle

and occassional peace within my life’s cage

 

But those days are gone

and this is where I’m stationed

for the present

 

Will I ever return

to that place?

Or somewhere better?