The Office Buildings We Must Maintain

Standing there, gray, abandoned, forlorn
The crumbling trellis of commerce
We must maintain the office buildings.

Trellises repurposed now for honeysuckle, climbing hydrangea
Gray gone green, yellow, and white.
The insides too
We must maintain the office buildings.

Corporations, traders, meetings all gone
Left with wide open spaces
Cubicles, offices, plumbing.
Group space, bedrooms, communal bathroom.
We must maintain the office buildings.

A roof is a roof
Out of the wind
Out of the cold
Out of the heat
Out of the rain
We must maintain the office buildings.

Water features now pools, showers, baths
Computers a co-op library
A place to find jobs, connect with family, or just browse the internet
Like everyone else.
We must maintain the office buildings.

Close down the shelters if you’re worried about money
There’s more than enough room on Main and Broadway
We must maintain the office buildings.

As for the food, no worries, no fear
Gardens on the roof, hydroponics inside
The food court has the equipment we’ll need
Kitchens, dishwashers, refrigerators, freezers
Keep the lights on and all will be fed.
We must maintain the office buildings.

Now don’t go get jealous
They have great views from high up there above town
Wave as you go by
But don’t gentrify
We must maintain the office buildings

Community living, community thriving
Keep up the space—don’t waste
We must maintain the office buildings.


—Jason P. Burnham