plane, bus 'n train
elevators 'n escalators
revelers 'n sale-day crowds
is where we meet
STRANGERS!
looking away,
with no eye-to-eye contact
no nod, wink, grunt of 'Hi's',
never ever recognizing
the sharers of the commons
shoved together
withdrawn incognito.
Here for thee be :
The Ten Commandments of Crowd Etiquette
Thou Shalt Honor Thy and Their Personal Bubbles
Thou Shalt Not Partake in Olfactory Betrayal
Thou Shalt Not Greet Strangers with a Nod, Only with Indifferent Defiance
Thou Shalt Yield Thy Seat only to the Ill, with-Child, Frail, Aged & the Lovely
Thou Shalt Stand Thy Ground, Letting Others Squeeze Pass Reluctantly
Thou Shalt Not Covet Another’s Seat or Space
Thou Shalt Keep Thine Phone Silent at Thine Side, and Do Not Speak
Thou Shalt Bear No Grudges for Shoves, Humphs & Grunts in Tight Spaces
Thou Shalt Honor all Queues, Despite their Length and Thy Lateness
Thou Shalt Yen the Zen of Strangers in Common Humanity
History is history drawn by observation to attract
Up and down motion
The thought of the old Dinosaur Escalators at Macy’s Herald Square
The old fossil’s still work
It gets Macy’s customers from selling floor to selling floor
They still work for sure
I know, I worked at the Macy’s Herald Square Tower for 38 Years on the 13th Floor of the Corporate Executive Office
Those old escalators were established since Macy’s Herald Square was built in brick and mortal
I can assure you I am not a fixture, and wasn’t around when Macy’s Herald Square was put together
Let’s just say I made history working for Macy’s, but I could be considered a Legend
However, I was around during the real MIRACLE ON 34th of the
MACY’S and GIMBEL’S era
The old escalators are still in effect and they have history of their own
No mystery
The old escalators are tour attractions to see in being accompanied in Macy’s Herald Square past and current of old and new.
affable aardvarks amused arbitrators
brash brazen baboons enjoyed escalators
careless careworn camels circled sissy
dark dusky deputies danced until dizzy
eccentric entertaining elephants enthusiastically embrace
faithful fashionable forest foxes follow a feverish face
gloriously gleeful gorillas gallantly grab a griping grouse
happily, hopeful, they can share with hippos, a house
Escalators work either way
Escalations work either way
Escalators put load on other side
Escalations push load on same side
First is for the physicially disbled
Next is for mentally disbled
The Spirit of God is in the wind that glides across the land-
stirring the tall Blue Stem into billowing waves of grass,
that roll toward snow-topped mountains-
defining the distant horizon-
mountains appearing nearly as purple as those
grape flavored ices cast on wooden sticks-
that most children find so appealing.
Majestic birds of prey glide effortless overhead,
riding invisible currents of air-
like escalators in the sky-
adding their plaintive calls to that of the incessant wind.
Below, furry creatures scurry for cover-
reminiscent of soldiers on fields of strife-
desperately fearing overhead activity and sounds.
Wild prairie flowers of all colors and variety
bloom profusely, diffused throughout a tapestry of green-
like colored glass ornaments on a Christmas tree.
Virgin land never touched by plow or defiled with post and wire.
So grand, the Tall Grass Prairie-
once so vast, now nearly forever gone -
replaced with corn, beans, and wheat.
Tis true that a prosperous people must eat-
but can’t what little is left be preserved for posterity,
as a constant reminder that even prosperity has a price?
I told the paper seller outside the train station
of your birth that day
he wasn't interested,
but I knew the truth of it
It had been a hard night for your mother
a storm of pain, of emotions of crying
now it was six in the morning and I left her
drinking tea and nibbling toast
while you lay sleeping in a perspex cube
Things would never be the same
Us three now met on the road and
we would walk together
You looked cross,
but I knew you would one day smile
and the sun did rise behind Archway Station
escalators squeaked and grumbled away
reflected against ceramic tiles
the paper seller would forget
but I would never forget today
We took our grandson for the day
To visit in the city.
Compared to where he lives, it must seem
Noisy, fast and gritty.
He marveled at the bridges,
The tall buildings and the river,
But there was one department
Where I knew that we’d deliver -
For elevators currently
Rank high up on his list
Of things that seem to thrill him.
(Escalators coexist.)
He proudly pushed the buttons,
Counted floors as they zipped by
And in Daddy’s office building
There were 8 that he could try!
A Barnes & Noble stop was great
Not only for a book
But for the escalators
(Up and down) that we all took.
Suburban kids are used to
Lots of room in which to play
But a nana with an elevator
Garners some cachet.
They are high state of art,
renovated or brand new.
In the hallway greets you fountain,
sculpture, statue or the painting.
Escalators, elevators
or the stairs will lead you up.
Decorated walls in wood
and uncounted standing books.
They will quench your every anguish.
They have books in every language –
second or the one for you.
From books learn, grow, improve,
you will also know the truth –
what you can and cannot do.
Inside, deep inside, at your window
Near the dim light and mystic shadow
Twinkle your moistened graceful eyes
Rustling leaves of moonlit memories
Opening the gates of many a garden
Sonnets of sobs and smiles of soul
Prayers fulfilled and prayers frustrated
Escalators toward hints from paradise
Calm cool cucumber slice on my eyes
Tranquil flames fostering faith and felicity
Inside I look and say what a universe
On the blurring border of light and dark
Nitroglycerin moments in a quiet refuge
_____________________________________________________
June 24, 2016
For the contest: Introspection – Acrostic
Sponsored by: John Hamilton
SPRING AT PIONERSKAYA
Frozen in the hum of the escalators’
Descent to the roaring metro,
Across the unwashed glass
Of government windows,
The equinoctal sun pins
My shadow tight
Up against the lengthening day,
And the spring smiles in the crowd
Are as scarce as icebergs in hell.
..............................................................
Note
For all you astronomy nerds, just a reminder that today is the Vernal Equinox.
Pionerskaya is of course a Metro station near my home.
This is not the golden age.
It is the future reeling from
earthquake, hurricanes,
lost innocence, lost generations:
Who will cry?
Their voices are muted
beneath the blare of the trumpet sounders
who cry for justice: human rights,
the environment, save this, save that,
save the world.
They do not see
In the modern world,
after the dark-age, beyond skyscrapers,
escalators and aeroplanes, without concord.
They do not see the muting things
nor hear the muted voices.
In the modern world,
they
do not feel.
This is not the golden age.
It is the future reeling from
earthquake, hurricanes,
lost innocence, lost generations:
Who will cry?
Their voices are muted
beneath the blare of the trumpet sounders
who cry for justice: human rights,
the environment, save this, save that,
save the world.
They do not see
In the modern world,
after the dark-age, beyond skyscrapers,
escalators and aeroplanes, without concord.
They do not see the muting things
nor hear the muted voices.
In the modern world,
they
do not feel.
Because real estate on the Boardwalk was in great demand,
the company had to build on a small section of land.
The casino was fashioned in European multi-level style.
Management believed it had a winner all the while.
The waitresses wore the familiar bunny ears and cotton tails.
The ship was on the sea with the wind billowing the sails.
However, in no time, the ship would run aground.
The public didn’t like escalators and tight places management found.
The competition within the city proved too strong.
What appeared to be all the right moves changed into wrong.
Unsuccessful business operations is what the management got.
Today, the site of the hotel is just a vacant lot.
Mall, Boutique, Department store treasures to my commercial heart do speak
Must frequent all to earn preferred status and join the frivolous clique
Glitzy curtains, fragrant candles, gaudy clothes through glamorous show windows peak
Sales, promotions, every-day values entreat any time during the week
Checks, petty cash start the extravaganza; plastic cards extend the streak
Nick knacks, valuables, and everything in between must seek
To grand openings, holiday giveaways, early previews, away I sneak
Revelling through posh galleries, gilded show rooms in the presence of chic manequins so sleek
Reconnoitering new fashions, suave styles, designer wears so sheek
Through crowded aisles, up squeaky escalators, into narrow corridors not for the meek
With such dedication, resolve, and passion you dare call me weak
My cabinets are stuffed, my closets are packed, my halls are cluttered; but I'm no freak
FRIDAY
Metro going home on Friday
Hell on wheels
Feet like lead and eyelids wilting
With weight of week’s work
Five interminable days
Of doing what the boss says
Every face in this train is like mine
I prop myself up to the door, close eyes
Sway in time with the train
Tracks suddenly change direction
Every soul staggers - an over- trained
Dance troupe well beyond rehearsal phase
At each station more worn faces forced
Into Faust’s bargain for youth again
Two days of rejuvenation,
Then the interminable five. Each station,
Each man, indistinguishable from the others,
As I am to them. At the end of the line,
Doors burst open. We trudge to the escalators.
Respite - we rise, pity ourselves,
Gaze unfocused at the floor,
Hunched over the moving rubber rail,
Adjusting grip every few seconds.
Rest one foot on the next step up,
One minute’s pause and eagerly
Look up to the surface lght -
Almost out of the pit
A prayer answered - “de profundis “
We’ve had enough,
We want to get home and shed the load,
Regenerate, renew contact with
Life above the grindstone pits.
Related Poems