Earphones Poem by Phil Soar

They walk around with earphones on
Oblivious to all
Smiling as they listen to
The latest music drawl
Listening on the way to work
Or sitting on the bus
Not tempted to strike up a chat
Because that's too much fuss
No two-way conversation
with anyone around
Just listening to a steady beat
And that god awful sound
The social skills have vanished
There's stillness in the air
The language almost disappears
And they don't seem to care
Earphones on at six a.m.
And all the world blocked out
The only way to speak to them
Is maybe when we shout
Or make insane hand gestures
That grab their short attention
And try and make light talking sense
To add as some prevention
I fear the Ear has lost the need
To listen as we speak
That music's taken over
And that Earphones killed the speech