Plastic Bag : Illusions of Grandeur

PLASTIC BAG - ILLUSIONS OF GRANDEUR Humdrum, meaningless existence : Was wrapping apples in the supermarket: The guys said it couldn’t be done. But with warm air and wind there’s freedom The sky’s the limit : poor boy makes good. Left the ‘hood, and now riding high Up in the blue like the soaring crows and seagulls, Those golden boys. Me ?! Just a plastic bag? No way! They said you’re nobody, man - Just another plastic bag, like every one of us. You’ll never amount to anything. So now look at me you guys Oh, I’m a kite, a bird, even a plane. The city looks so small from up here. How come everyone doesn’t make the break? Carpe diem. Take control of your destiny, man. Oh, oh, no! Descent beyond control ! Hey ! No. . . wow, a rising current. . . whew. . . Oh-oh! No, no. . . . down. . . crashing silently into A dog-crapped mud puddle - Not with a bang, but a whimper* - And quickly walked over by kids at will Turned into a dirty plastic crumple, Useless and destined for burial in a landfill. And all the other crappy bags hissing in the wind, With the voices singing in my ears saying that this was all folly ** We told you so. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Notes One windy day we saw a plastic bag blown high up over the cityscape, and tumble to the ground after a brief flight. It made me think. * from THE HOLLOW MEN T S Eliot ** from JOURNEY OF THE MAGI T S Eliot