"things to come"

a film written by h g wells

when i was young, tv recycled
old and not particularly notable
movies  

the local station needed to
fill up the time, cheaply on
saturday afternoons

so we saw the same films
repeatedly; the really good ones,
king kong,

the wizard of oz, e.g.,
were saved for specific dates, 
heavily promoted

the others, whew, seemed
to be played every
third week

one, "things to come', in
grainy black and white, 
by HG Wells

a 1936 speculative,
foresaw wars going on
for years

and years, with bombers
in waves pounding cities,
missiles

blazing forth, anti-aircraft
bursting, the waves kept coming,
buildings

smoldering, smashed and
flattened.  an old movie
an old movie.

God help us,
we are watching it
now  

june 15 2025