SEVERAL MILLENNIA before today,
we figured out about fire.
As the ice melted away
we spread near everywhere —
weaving and bobbing,
potting and farming.
Fitting an axle on to a wheel.
That was, perhaps, our BIGGEST deal.
Stones. Sticks and bones.
Eventually metal.
We used to hunt-gather.
(And settle scores.)
After a binge
we invented hinges,
evermore leveraging
opening doors.
What did it matter?
What is the point?
Time forever is out of joint.
Tea, cakes, and ices cause diabetes.
Civilization is a disease.
Soon we may live on Mars and the moon,
yet our comings and goings remain picayune.
Not as important as we like to think.
When we go extinct, no one will blink.
Methinks 'tis the reason we take to drink.
