the evolution of mankind, as told by strangers
MATTHEW DAWKINS
The aim of my Everyday Life Project, The Evolution of Mankind, as told by strangers, is to understand all the new ways people cope with the COVID-19 global pandemic and translate my observations of these new behaviours into poetry. Whereas many poems explore or investigate the human condition, I perceived our current global pandemic as a challenge to our human condition, that is the very way we experience life, and I wanted to take advantage of this window of time to record all the ways humanity sustains itself. In other words, despite the global pandemic and how we adapt to accommodate it, which themes of our humanity persist and fight to remain recognizable. It is the purpose of this project to capture all our norms and behaviours which last and delineate our attitudes towards, what I considered to be, a dystopian present.
New friendship looks like
Laughing over FaceTime and
iMessage games.
Complaining about nothing
And discovering what
We both like to be named.
Making faces over Zoom hoping
No one will realize.
Seeing you also think about us
In those smart pixelated eyes.
What did I say this was called again?
Neither of us have an umbrella
And it is the second thing we have in common besides
Sitting in this bus alone.
Together we watch the rain make something happen outside
And we listen to it over the engine and ourselves,
At least there is something taking place and it is not us
These days
The weather feels as special as fireworks, I suppose
This time of year feels new.
I think you must
Think the same because you
Are still looking out the window as if you expect a parade at the next stop.
The driver does not
Even pause for a moment so I imagine you cannot collect your breath
Long enough to realize our world is truly empty.
Aside from us
Aside from this bus
There is little else happening
Anywhere.
World Alone
you know none of them
can see your smile through your mask so what is the point anyway?
twist it as close to your eyes as you want
lost boys will never pay attention long enough to realize it.
their eyes travel elsewhere.
unfortunately bees come for the honey
not the flower.
but bloom anyway