The End of Shopping

The Window, at the Moment of Flame

by Alicia Ostriker

 

And all this while I have been playing with toys
A toy power station a toy automobile a house of blocks

 

And all this while far off in other lands
Thousands and thousands, millions and millions—

 

You know—you see the pictures
Women carrying their bony infants

 

Men sobbing over graves
Buildings sculpted by explosion

 

Earth wasted bare and rotten—
And all this while I have been shopping, I have

 

Been let us say free
And do they hate me for it

 

Do they hate me

8 thoughts on “The End of Shopping

  1. Whoa! There is some power here. Wow!
    For ME, this photo is VERY profound. I know this may sound odd, but I felt like it was the end of consumerism. As if all the world had stopped: no more malls, no more stores, no more thinking life comes cheap, no more waste at Earth’s expense, no more, no more. Like after a great holocaust, and the cheap, unconscious living has come to an end. It’s like looking at the end of the world as we know it. The garage looks boarded up, the remains of a once “nice” little brick ranchhouse. Now the weeds are blowing in, the moss taking over and slowly the Earth reclaims herself. The shopping cart looks like it blew in with the weeds, a reminder of a world long past.
    I realize that may sound shocking and doomsday-ish to some, but for me it feels real. A reminder of what and who we really are. A reminder that we are NOT necessarily in charge. A reminder that the Earth will go on long after our passing. A reminder that we do have a choice in how we live and how we treat this ancient planet.
    I know that is a lot from just one photo, but it’s what slammed into my chest when I opened this. Please forgive if this was a comedy and I rained on your parade. LOL!! 🙂 🙂 It’s just that your photos do something to me INSTANTLY and I decided a long time ago to share that with you.
    It’s an AMAZING photo, eddie, and needs to be in a gallery! Your art makes the most clear statements to me.
    Hugs,
    Robin

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