Google Scans, by Charlie Bell

This poem by our member Charlie Bell was selected for and published in Folio #74 in 2020.

Google Scans

The chambers of my heart,
the channels of my bowel,
the highways of my blood –
intricate, detailed, ghostly shadows.

Body turned inside out, flesh and bone
Revealed in street view.
Rotate 360°, no-one is at home.
Click and zoom in.
I am in the gaps you cannot see.

On a map you can’t smell the grass,
sense the mud, feel the cold,
or appreciate a stunning landscape.
You don’t see the badger killing the hedgehog or the hawk
catching the mouse.