Posted by Atticus on July 25, 2004, at 19:48:13
Atomic Cafe
Twilight in New Mexico
In 1947
And another
Crystal-clear sky
Unblemished by clouds
Greets the patrons
Arriving
For happy hour
On the flagstone patio
Of the Atomic Cafe.They've come to check out the bomb,
The atom bomb,
To see
If it will
Ascend to heaven
Like a titanic flaming fist
Thrust skyward on the horizon.The bomb tests are the hippest
Show in town,
And the observers
Never miss it,
Anxiously waiting,
Waiting to discover
If the bomb will spike
Their vodka martinis
With a piquant dash
Of strontium 90,
Or remain inert, harmless,
No longer the stuff of nightmares.Their gazes,
Made inscrutable and iridescent
By dark green sunglasses,
Secretly harbor the unmistakable
Wide-eyed apprehension
Of anxious children.
They sit and chatter,
Flinching without moving,
Cowering without ducking,
Made uneasy by the presence
Of the unwanted monster
Newly arrived in their lives,
Dangling silently
From its scaffolding
Miles away.They fidget with swizzle sticks,
With car keys,
With coins,
Make small talk
About television,
All the while
Anticipating
How they'll handle
Their encounter
With this alien force,
Fearful of its roar,
Fearful of its fury,
Fearful that this domesticated demon
May someday, some way
Turn and snap at them.
Has its nature,
So unpredictable, so unknowable,
Truly been harnessed?
Can it ever
Really be
A stabile and trusted member
Of their nuclear family?I watch these troubled souls
From my vantage point
Atop the spindly steel legs
And criss-crossed I-beams
Of the test tower,
Silhouetted against
The streaks of pink and violet
That measure the sun's
Steady retreat,
Noting the familiar
Faces in the distant crowd.
My mother, my sister,
My father, my brother,
All smiling,
All supportive,
All hopeful,
All terrified
That I'll detonate
Without warning,
Without reason,
Without hesitation,
My motives a mystery,
Leaving only scorched earth
Where I once stood.They shift in their seats
At the Atomic Cafe,
Brace their backs
With exquisite care
Against cushions
Stuffed with eggshells,
Their glass-shrouded pupils
Flicking left, flicking right,
Watching, always watching
For any sign
That something's amiss,
That a wayward chemical reaction.
An unintended electrical discharge,
Will trigger the conflagration
That they came
Expecting
But not really wanting
To see.And sometimes I tire of their scrutiny,
And I'm hurt by their fear,
And occasionally
Despite their good intentions,
I want to descend from this vulnerable perch,
Sneak up behind them,
And whisper,
As softly as I can,
"Ka-boom."
-- Atticus
poster:Atticus
thread:370483
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/write/20040320/msgs/370483.html