The Carcinogen

How fast do we have

To spin the world to

See it roll right of its axis?

Flung to the far parts

Of the Milky Way

Cast into darkness never again

To be found by any

Ray of light.

The cycle of madness continues

Black swirls eating color

Cobras rise hoods drawn weapons ready

Malevolence and dread

Swim in every head.

The rising tide of high blood pressure

How fitting that we should be

Swept up in our own current

And killed by the undertow.

We've called this a glass floor

A prized trophy

In a palace of our creation,

But I can hear the cracking

And I know that this is ice.

How long before

We are splayed on all fours

Like a beaver crossing

When they know the melt is near.

Lonely already, can't imagine

The horror of true isolation

The frozen water broke

Every person on their own

Deserted islands drifting further away.

I can’t stand to be alone

Makes these hands wring

And move to things

Tomorrow I’ll regret.

During frozen blight

The cool black night

And ice that assaults my skin

How do we mend these things?

Is fear, better than death?

The fin in the water

Or the teeth on the skin

Which would you prefer?

How to cure a disease

That we chain ourselves to,

Taking big mouthfuls every meal

After being told,

‘This is the carcinogen

And here’s the list of food it's in,’

We still hunt for that taste

Savoring a death

That we draw ever nearer.

Instead of letting tastes mature

Learning to prefer nurturing things

And refusing the loud salesmen

Of all our favorite poisons.

Here we sit under a sky

Painted canary yellow caution

And simply draw the curtains.

Come now gather round

Sit in front of the fire

While I share the tale,

Of how love died and rose again

In the hope that we could live

A life unclouded by hate,

That when we die we’d go beyond death

That other kind of life, the substance

That we now live in the shadow of.

I’ll bring the timber

You bring the flame

Let me teach you

How to play the game,

To draw the picture

Frame by frame.