Five Minutes Ago They Dropped the BombAfter the bomb dropped the homophobic cop and the steambath patron he was handcuffing melted into each other's arms into infinity After the bomb fell concrete angels in all the graveyards took wing Every bell in the world gave one last high-pitched ring into oblivion Five minutes ago a tear or two slipped in the halls of karma at the insignificant passing of 3rd. dimensional existence – 3rd. stone from the sun – reality factor time factor irrelevant – total dissolution of creatures IQ 100 EQ 35 evolutionary phase median ape to bodhisattva The bodhisattvas wept Buddha watched mountains raise their final crest – burst into pulverized space/time Basho's spirit watched every moment in nature cruelly bloom into the final haiku moment of infinity Five minutes ago the Marxists got their final synthesis the neo-nazis their final solution the capitalists their last boom from the economy Five minutes ago we kissed said "Shit! They've done it …" Armageddon - Apocalypse Five minutes ago Time Must Have a Stop five minutes ago we passed into borrowed time five minutes multiplied 12 times by the hour 24 times by the day 365 times by the year and 38 times since Hiroshima shimmered into oblivion Five minutes ago we passed into borrowed time again reality factor minus: 3 million 994 thousand and sixty five minutes ago - Chris Faiers (1984) |
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Author's note: this poem was multi-published in 1984 - in the chapbook of the same title, in "The Unfinished Anthology" (Unfinished Monument Press), in "Anti-War Poems: an anthology" edited by Stehen Gill (Vesta Publications), & I believe in "The Americas Review". It was republished in "Crossing Lines" (Seraphim Editions, 2008). War-era poets share experiences Toronto Star review of "Crossing Lines" by Joe Fiorito |