Post War Dividend

I kiss my sister Chlorine
And expire in her gas
Leaving salty residues on the walls
And crystal dust on the floor.

I dream a dream of science
Of absolute form
Pure action
Cleanliness
And right.

I wipe white ceramic
With handkerchief
Wipe my spectacles
With alcohol.

Soak sugar cubes in ether
And wander bar to bar
With halitosis.

I stick a red card
In my breast pocket
And shake my head
To particle decay.

I dress smart
I act smart
Chemistry is a cure
Physics is a slave
Biology is controllable.


James Piers Taylor, 18/7/2006 Essex


IMAGE: Medium Energy X-Ray Image of Galactic Center (2004) produced by NASA/CXC/UCLA/MIT/M.Muno et al. from data gathered by the orbiting Chandra X-Ray Observatory.