Digital Chromosomes Poem by Ali Rahimi

People are rushing to their destinations,
Waves of them moving unconcerned, noncommittal,
Some looking at the pavements,
Blind to the unfamiliar faces around them,
Nobody looks around! Nobody realizes the healing gaze of the sun,
The love affair of birds and trees, air and dust, sparrows flirting boisterously,
The coin on the pavement is trampled by ruthless passersby,
Its face bruised, scars, it whines in pain but unnoticed,
The crowd is indifferent to car horns and even sirens,
Senseless to the female laborers riding their bicycles, in droves,
To their sweatshops, like a train of ants climbing up a wrinkled wall for food,
Men in black are wearing flashy sunglasses,
Like bizarre aliens assaulting the earth,
Who are they? What the hell are they doing on our earth?
Are they fighters? Decorated commanders? Hollywood actors? Creatures from the Mars?
Hatefully curiously different, and unfathomable,
Some listening to music, bobbing their heads,
Or shaking their hips,
Vanguards of proper interaction! Decent behavior!
Why don’t they dare share it with others? Is music noise pollution!
Hundreds of collisions, no apologies! No embarrassment! No shame!
Glamorous heroes of table manners? Glittering leaders of social etiquette!
Captains of attention! Paragons of politeness!
Bumping into each other unawares,
Shoulder to shoulder, packed like sardines,
And proceed regardless,
Like the rain drops hitting the pavement harsh and heartless,
They swerve to the right or the left, swing like a pendulum at times,
Increase their speed, or walk slowly, like a massive ship on savage waves,
Inconsiderate careless bunch on their mobile phones,
Texting while walking, textwalking? LineIng, What’s Upping strolls? Facebook rambling, Twitter running, walking Selfies? moving Vibers?
They walk like bricks are pushed in their necks,
Mobiles are penetrated in their brains,
Social media are forcefully shoved in their minds and bodies.
Their chromosomes are made of selfies, gene pools of games and programs!
Their blood circulates like twitters,
They have replaced their neurons with keyboards,
Their faces with monitors,
Their souls are possessed by the digital vampire!
They walk unawares, in groups, obsessed but happy!
Digital sleepwalkers!
Digital vampires! , Digital vampires!
Digital chromosomes! Digital chromosomes!