An Intruder 5
But I wanted to be sure so I called my next door neighbor-
Not really a friend, but whose advice I entertain from time to time.
'Look, ' she said, 'there are plenty better things to worry about-
Every day more and more, thanks to people's gullibility,
And the disaster mentality created by the press.
(Daphne is fiercely anti-media) Haven't you noticed?
E.G. the same supplements that were said to promote longevity, yesterday
(And which cost an arm and a leg at the health food store, not incidently)
Now will kill you. Take anti-oxidants, for example. Take vitamin E.'
'Take what? ' I asked, not following.
'Surprise! ' People who take vitamin E die sooner. It's been shown.
The whole thing's a scam, cooked up by the pharmaceutical industry, for...'
I didn't know. But it made sense, now she mentioned it.
'You're sure? '
'Sure.'
'But what should I do? '
'Just eat a balanced diet.'
'I mean about the pigeon.'
'Oh, that. Forget it. I'm glad it's not my problem. I detest pigeons.
There's nothing you can do about it, anyway.'
'Maybe I shouldn't fret it.'
'I didn't say THAT. Just choose your obsessions carefully
so as not to waste time.'
That seemed very fair. 'What do you worry about? , I asked,
Like someone who admitted they needed instruction.
'Right now? The Greenland Ice Sheet. It's melting, ya' know.
Look, gotta run.' Click.
That night there was a terrible storm...
poem by Morgan Michaels
Added by Poetry Lover
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