Smartphone

Smartphone

I minutes have been from my smartphone.
And now before the screen.
A cold emptiness opens up,
No feeling has heard or seen.
Retail price for the beast: Give or take, one grand;
A hefty-as-hell price of darkness in my hands.
Now that it’s powered down,
This afternoon I will say…
I hours have been from my smartphone.

I hours have been from my smartphone.
My minds is still empty,
Like missing a meal,
Of Oxycontins with a side of hard liquor.
No way my mind can get any sicker,
When staring into a glowing screen,
Of death -- Death heard and seen,
On TikTok. On Instagram. On Facebook Reels.
This beast must no longer steal:
My thoughts. My heart. My soul.
To tell you this is my short term goal…
I days have been from my smartphone.

I days have been from my smartphone.
With the occasional necessary visit,
To get a six-digit code.
Not to sing an ode.
To a beast that strives to control me.
To sometimes pay some bills.
To sometimes make a call or text,
Developing mastery over the beast in the cage.
Guarding the key. Forbidding the beast:
Access. Escape. Rage.
I don’t serve the beast. The beast serves me.
I take from the beast:
My freedom. Its freedom. My power to say…
I weeks have been from my smartphone.

I weeks have been from my smartphone.
And left the beast at home.
No longer a victim of its grasp.
How can any phone,
Become a hungry monster?
Eating up my mind?
My attention cannot be diverted,
Each and every time.
I pick up the phone to make a call,
Not look at social networks.
Where lurks a beast poised to attack,
And turn my mind into a snack,
Or a 5-course meal.
Today I feel free.
Looking forward to the day,
When I will say…
I years have been from my smartphone.