Words on the screen are insubstantial,
waving in and out, blurring the lines.
Words on a printed page
Black stamped on white
sharp relief, solid-gold reality
steady and always present.
Maps on a screen, all jittery and jumpy,
tell you which way to go with voice or line.
Scroll and zoom in and out,
fingertip convenience but energy-expensive.
Maps on a printed page are there solid,
never change, always tell you where you are going.
Reliable and steady, always there – one-dimensional.
The virtual world is alive and stimulating,
appealing and energizing.
But the day that you lose power,
printed material once again resolves into sharp relief,
and we are all relived that we thought to save it!
Just in case….
