The Dying High Stret Poem by Tony Ogunlowo

This is not
how
Sinclair Lewis imagined it.

It had survived
both wars
- even the terrible East End Blitz!

It had survived,
family bickerings, takeover bids, sibling rivalry,
and even Aunt Sal throwing a wobbly at the checkout!

Then came,
high rates, high wages

and the financial meltdown
of the last decade
didn't help very much.

And then came
Tesco, Sainsbury, Morrisons and others
with
out-of-town hypermarkets
and 21st century technology
swooped in
with snazzy websites,
replacing shop windows
and people shopped virtually from home.

Gone,
is the hustle
and bustle of the high street,
the gossiping shopkeepers,
the many shoppers
to be replaced
by boarded up shops,
mass unemployement
and the jovial man
from
Ocado or Waitrose
delivering your wares.