A critical mass of uranium–
235 with unstable edges
Releases annihilation in seconds,
The thermal pulse spreads exponentially
In the droning wake of a lone bomber .
235 with unstable edges
Releases annihilation in seconds,
The thermal pulse spreads exponentially
In the droning wake of a lone bomber .
The fireball nightmare erases thousands
In an instant, an exclamatory
Scream under a mushroomed stroke in heaven—
Unholy fallout of Prometheus,
Succinct in E = mc2 .
Pluto’s Gate shutter snaps the last moments
Into nuclear-flash, still silhouettes,
Burnt outlines of flickering extinguished,
Not from normal dissipation of fuel
But from an unnatural wick snuffing :
A girl at play, airborne, never landing ;
A wife on bank stairs, never withdrawing ;
A man with a ladder, never climbing ;
A dog in the plaza, never fetching .
A wife on bank stairs, never withdrawing ;
A man with a ladder, never climbing ;
A dog in the plaza, never fetching .
*[ WSB ].
Occupation : Poet . 