By Karen Poirier-Brode, MD
Echoes of elegant old Victorians:
Wrought iron, brick floors, gold-plated pier mirrors, columns,
And under gas lamps and stained-glass skylit dome,
Shimmer chandeliers, white tablecloths, silverplate, and chrome
“Fancy,” you say, eliciting surprise because you picked the spot
But, in afterthought,
I remember you haven’t been here before
The food delivered to the trunk of the car
During the pandemic
Eaten away from contagion and panic
Across the restaurant, in the back,
Sits a State Assembly plaque
High up on the face of an enormous gas-lit fireplace
Men, over meals, conducted cons and commerce
Not so long ago, yet before Zoom or emails
Beneath that seal’s mountains and poppy fields
Our spot overlooks a sweet-scented patio,
And past a Cupid fountain’s floral cameo
Amid the laughter and fustle
A breeze rustles
Around tables of patrons in Easter-toned finery
The picture — a pastel palette of Persephone
It’s a day for families
A portion small, like our duality
Others span several generations
Together to share in joyous celebration
Of a Christian holy day
For some, a vernal fête, sweets, egg-centered play
While we eat our brunch with chile verde
On phones, my son and I read poetry
From finding “Green Chiles” Baca online,
We share links to poems and great songs in kind
A steam-train whistle tempts a stroll,
From our video screens to Victorian constitutional
Along steel tracks in cobble-stoned streets
Once plied Hero-inspired manufactured feats —
Wrought iron wonders with great spoked-wheels
Iron Horses, Hot Shots, and Cannonballs
Their human-built mechanization, cattle-catcher to caboose
Once a unique vision, a now-classic design choice
Is the personal touch of these faded wonders of might
lost in the algorithms of machine-learning Zeit?
Technology rushes in a sweeping tide,
Life can feel overwhelming; there is no guide
We walk, engaging in conversation —
Industrial Revolution, mysteries of AI intrusion,
Nations facing uncertainty, dissent, and power schemes
Will all this change collide with personal dreams?
From the winter of political chaos, wars, and confusion
We talk of plans, a spring of progress, hopes of favorable conclusion
Along that path so near the river
That sunny day with Magritte-cloud shiver
Photos by Karen Poirier-Brode, MD
