Lost Baggage

The lines are long, the wait is slow

As we all shuffle to and fro

Emptying pockets, and taking off shoes

Anything to make it through airport security blues

 

The conveyor belt hums, the x-ray beams

As our belongings disappear as if in dreams

Nail clippers and corkscrews, a flash of metal

Confiscated and taken, lost to their new settle

 

But where do they go, these forbidden tools?

These items deemed too risky for us simple fools

They end up in government auctions, it seems

Sold in bulk, in strange and varied schemes

 

Foldable shovels, flashlights, and cigar cutters too

All taken from us, and sold without a clue

Pocket knives in lots of a hundred, or by brand

An assortment of items, seized and banned

 

And what of lost luggage, left behind and forgotten?

Unclaimed and unloved, its fate is now begotten

Resold, repurposed, or recycled, the bags find new life

Their contents sorted through, causing some strife

 

So next time you travel, and through security you pass

Remember the items taken, and where they end up at last

Perhaps in a government auction, up for sale in bulk

Or in a pile of lost luggage, left behind in a hulk

 

Airport security, a necessary evil it seems

Taking our belongings, and selling them in schemes

But as long as we stay safe, and make it through the gate

We'll accept the inconvenience, and accept our fate. ("Lost Baggage") by Courtney Weaver Jr.