Adaptation

Young people always seem to want,
above all, to be au courant;
a signal feature of our race
that’s helped us try to keep apace
of all that science offers us.
Some can’t imagine that’s a plus;
new things are often seen as threats,
and change they bring comes with regrets
for passing times and simpler tasks
we’d hoped and prayed would always last.
But adaptation is the key
to racing with eternity.
We have to change some things we love
to stay alert and rise above
the challenges that life presents
without relying on sentiment.

There was a time the abacus
was new, and it provided us
with ways to calculate our yields,
improving plantings of our fields,
to measure distances and spans
for building bridges over lands
untraveled that connected us.
That simple, ancient abacus!
Now cell phones stare us in the face,
and artificial minds replace
our calculus for what’s ahead
while we lie safely in our beds,
enjoying plenty, entertained
with stimuli that prod the brain.

It’s wonderful, this brand-new age,
yet, dangerous in many ways
we can’t foresee. To keep the faith,
most will agree we can’t erase
our history, but, rather, strive
to keep the truths we’ve learned alive.
That works for most of us who need
to stay informed and up to speed...,
for those who need to balance nature,
nurturing our primal stature...,
but not, perhaps, for those who want
above all to be au courant.