So, what is it with
perimeter-walled fences
That barricades good
neighbours?
On metal gates, there
are warning signs
Of mbwa kali (fierce
dogs) and 24-hour surveillance
What happened? What
changed?
I thought if I came
over and said my greetings
Like good neighbours
do, the least I could expect
Was a thermos flask
full of tea and perhaps
Little of suspicious
looks
But not so
Instead, neighbours
know each other
If their flowerpots are
knocked over by neighbour’s children
Eye-brows knit, gates
are opened for process servers
Suddenly, they know
each other
If the other pumps
over his home theatre’s volume
Of course to
out-compete the other’s house all-night prayers
I stand in-between
these Berlin-walled residences
I wonder to myself,
wasn’t it a thief’s theory
That the higher the
wall, the mighty the residence
Which equals more
likelihood for attack?
In the past, it was my
business
To know how many
children my neighbor has
If his child sat while
I passed, I taught it manners
If I try it today,
they call it ‘assault’
If I find out why they
are not awake on a Saturday morning
They call it
‘intrusion to privacy’
Is this the new form
of neighbourliness?
Photo credit: Link
Shared with: Theme Thursday # Neighbours
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