The Machine That Watched The Watcher

The Machine That Watched The Watcher

He built a machine to watch the street,

With cameras hidden in a tree,

He wanted to know who walked past,

And who was looking secretly.

But every morning at exactly eight,

The machine would turn its eye,

And point towards the house next door,

Although nobody knew why.

He checked the wires and changed the lens,

He tightened every screw,

But every time he walked away,

The machine watched him too.

One evening he stayed behind,

And hid beneath his chair,

He waited for the machine to move,

But found it watching there.

Then suddenly the neighbour came,

Carrying a machine of his own,

He looked across the garden fence,

And stared at the unknown.

They stood there with their inventions,

Both machines began to glow,

Then both men slowly understood,

They’d been watching one another so.

The two machines began to beep,

As though they found it funny,

The neighbours shook their heads and laughed,

And switched them off together, honey.

But late that night a little light,

Appeared behind the glass,

Two machines were watching quietly,

As someone else walked past.