The men in suits
Think that things
Should grow
Forever.
The men up in the towers
And on the television screens
Speak of never-ending growth
And order “Keep on buying things!”
They tell us not to worry,
We all must do our part.
Wrapping up our presents
Ripped from mother nature’s heart.
The goods run down the factory line
Churning out production
Must meet this quarter’s targets,
Or face employee reduction
Machines pass bottles
From left to right,
Robots replacing bodies.
How could we
Have put up a fight,
When we’re brainwashed to believe
That growth’s a democratic right?
What will come of man,
Without work?
Just idle hands,
Will we go berserk?
Will we slowly scroll
Our way into oblivion?
Materialism ballooning
Across every meridian?
The owners of capital
Relax in their villas
People take to the streets,
Movements of guerillas
“How would you like
Your facts today?”
A polite inquiry.
“We serve them in many ways,”
“Will you take them scrambled?
With a side of white lies?
Will you take a gamble
On a full portion of facts?
Surely you couldn’t stomach that
Half a portion will do,
And don’t take them too fast
Take some time to chew
You might feel ill,
Facts these days,
Not so easy to swallow…
But what when we stop,
and we spit out their lies
When we take back our time
and open our eyes?
Reject their false desires
The wants they’ve created.
When we rediscover
What it means to be sated
When we recalculate need
And refuse to exceed it
Eschew the greed,
And decline to feed it
When will we realise
that not to grow
is not to wither,
To slow is not to die.
When we return to what’s basic,
What’s ours and what’s true
We’ll realise it’s not growth,
What we need is gratitude.
