92. Electronic Barrier

This actually happened to me the other day. Maybe the young girl in question would have rather died than chat with a verbose old biddy at the bus-stop! On the other hand, I wish she'd given me a chance! Who knows.........?


ELECTRONIC BARRIER!


We stood at the bus-stop, side by side,
An elderly lady and I.
And we started to chat, as strangers do,
When they catch each other's eye.
'It's a beautiful day!' I brightly said,
Not original but true.
'Really perfect' she then replied,
'I live near here. Do you?'
I told her I lived nearby and she
Responded with her address.
' But you're not Australian' I said;
From her accent I could guess.
Within a minute or two I'd learned
Her life-history, family, name,
And she had learnt as much from me;
I'd responded with the same.
Then we looked up and saw the bus.
It was coming round the bend.
And I said goodbye with a cheerful smile,
Feeling I'd made a friend.

We stood at the bus-stop, side by side,
A lovely young girl and I.
And standing silently seemed quite odd
So I spoke up by-and-by.
'It's a beautiful day!' I brightly said,
Not original, but true.
There was no response so we simply stood
Silently, we two.
Then I stole a sideways glance at her
And, suddenly, it was clear,
She hadn't heard a word I'd said.
She'd an ipod in her ear.
So we went on standing wordlessly
Until the bus arrived
And maybe she didn't notice......
As for me, I felt deprived.
An ipod is fine and dandy,
A smart and modern trend,
But we simply can't compare it
To the smile of a new-found friend.