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A culture’s values
lie in its treasure chests.
What people spend
money on day in day out.
Rock concerts, sporting events,
hairstyles, boob jobs, four-wheel drive,
airline tickets
to the Caribbean .
What we buy we love,
and that loves us,
breath of life
and song and sight.
These coins I hand
to the beggar
before me
is small pittance
for a world
that doesn’t care.
We can even
sell our blood
and zygotes
for a big new screen.
The better to see
ourselves
in a good story
full of racing death.
David Radavich’s recent collections include America Bound: An Epic for Our Time (2007), Canonicals: Love’s Hours (2009), and Middle-East Mezze (2011). His plays have been performed across the U.S., including six Off-Off-Broadway, and in Europe. His new collection is The Countries We Live In.