The Consumer

That day
my car was broken so
I bought a train ticket
to go to work.
There, I bought a cup of coffee
to bitter my tongue in
a most pleasurable way.
After, I went into my cubicle
and bought shares in a company,
on the Internet.
That would sure bring me profit
(or so I’ve been told).
At lunch I had lunch
and bought it myself,
for myself.

After work I bought flowers
for my wife, and toys
for my children,
oh, and on the way I
also bought another cup
of coffee, for myself.

At home my wife and
my credit card have decided
on a new mortgage deal
for ourselves.

***

That day
my car had long since
been fixed and I drove to work,
but first I bought some gas
at the station, and while there
I also got myself some coffee
for the road.

At work I got paid and went
into my cubicle where
I sold some shares
on the Internet.
These indeed brought me profit
(but not like I’d been told).
At lunch I had lunch and
bought it myself,
for myself.

After work I passed
by the jeweler’s and bought
a necklace for my wife and bracelets
for my kids.

At home we ordered pizza
for ourselves and cream puffs
for the kids.

***

My children have bought
a wheelchair for me
and coffee for themselves.
After work they come and
visit me, they buy me
flowers and cream puffs.
They’ve also paid for
their mother’s coffin
and most of the funeral expenses.

Paid by my insurance,
my doctor’s opinion
is that I should
rest my eyes and try
to keep them closed
for as long as possible
to prepare for “a possible
impairment.”
Other than that
there is no other way.
I’ve no more hair
and no more cells
to pay with.

I remember all the times
I went to work
and paid a lot
of money for gas
and for coffee.
I also invested
in shares and other instruments,
and even got profit,
but, at the same time, I had
a big mortgage to cover.
I managed to pay it off,
right before my wife died.

Oh, I forget,
I’d been paying for
her flowers right up
until the funeral bouquet.

For a while now
I’ve stopped buying things
and I’m sitting in the chair my
children bought for me,
keeping my eyes closed
for as long as possible.

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This poem is part of my book The Competitive Edge – A Collection of Poems

Read also: The Competitive Edge (title poem) | The Consumer | The Parsleyness of Being | To the City of Hopes and Steel | The Corridor | The Immigrant | Nine-to-fiving | Morning Skies | Into the Big Blue-Gray

My intro

image credits: Asa Wilson / Wikimedia