Though virus free above the clouds,
we shift words electronically;
by flood and fire, earth, air consumed –
the future of books, young think doomed.
But where’s the inscribed flyleaf hand,
the foxing proof by age consumed,
Ex Libris proudly pasted there,
yellowing pages, corners turned?
These are the bookmarks treasured most,
curled legs on sofa, surfing tales,
a snuggled child, prompt picture dreams,
seeds of imagination sown.
So bless the storytellers rôle,
the spoken word preserved in print,
stacked shelves of memories evoked
from paperback to leather bound.
Stephen Kingsnorth (Cambridge M.A., English & Religious Studies), retired to Wales, UK, from ministry in the Methodist Church due to Parkinson’s Disease, has had pieces curated and published by on-line poetry sites, printed journals and anthologies, including Poetry Potion. He has, like so many, been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net. His blog is at https://poetrykingsnorth.wordpress.com