So much of what is seen goes unnoticed
So much of what is seen goes unnoticed
Internal mechanisms
Filter out the overload
The balance of probability is maintained,
Unconsciously.
So many people say they have never understood
Statistics
Algebra redefined as a human construct
Catching ourselves before we slip
Holding the world to account
For its misdeeds
Closing the book on excuses,
The way we pay attention
Weighted in favour of previous experience,
Finding humour in the inconsistent nature
Of selective attention,
Individual differences
Are often overlooked.
And an overbite
(which to some extent
Is irrelevant but adds colour to the recollection)
Drop his briefcase
On the floor of a tube train,
Out rolled a small bottle of Viagra
And a box of condoms,
I admired his confidence
Which was mislaid in the fumble
Of retrieval.
The carriage swayed violently
From side to side
To the rhythm of a machine gun,
Karma staccato.
I am careful to mind the gap
Between reality and reason
When a train jolts
I am catapulted into an old memory
Of terrorism and bloodlust
Why does the brain do that?
Years can slip by in a moment
Was Bill Sticker ever caught
Did he really get prosecuted?
When did shoplifting become
A fashionable pastime
For the wealthy classes
Suffering an existential crisis
Of insufficient veracity
To recover their senses
Before feeling the weight of the law
Brush their sleeves
Their pockets full of posies.
A Romany woman with a baby
Holds out a plastic cup,
Heather has a way of getting everywhere,
Grief can be a murderer
A curse on the tip of her tongue,
Make a wish and watch the carnage unfold,
When the worst always seems to happen.
Mark my words
So much of what is important
Is lost in the process of thinking
Until one day we realise
Nothing really matters
Unless there is balance
On both sides of the equation.
Nothing ever adds up,
Until all the questions have been answered
Satisfactorily,
As requested.