The Heat Is Coming

The heat is coming. An oven door opened in

Damascus in Ankara in Cape Town in Kingston,

gusts of air bring the boiling swelter north.

Now torrid times begin. It doesn’t matter,

we don’t get to choose our altar. Meteorologists in America

crow over record weather: 117, 118, 122. Not

for a century has the mercury raced

with such alacrity into the red zone.

The ocean is dying but we’re dying of

thirst, the power grid over Paris just burst,

they think it’s hackers from Novosibirsk

meddling with our thermostats and our elections.

The heat is coming, the cry goes up across

the continent, borders fray and rend, nations

race to break their covenants with each other.

Step away from my breeze, I’ll bring you to your knees,

ignore the death of bees, just give us our

daily cake. He said what to whom what a liar

what a cheat it’s not strange for flowers to bloom in

December, did you see his latest tweet?

The pavement dries up and dies, that sun will

damage your eyes, look at the idiot, he

can barely close his thighs, who cares if those

people die. A manhole in Bucharest today

exploded, the Nikkei just imploded, it’s a great

time to make a killing in gold. You must burn it

to stay alive, get off my land you’ll get fried, turn

to me, I’ll be your guide, I alone can fix it.

The heat is coming, no one can fix it, no one can

stop the ships yet vacationers watch

them sink eating fish and chips. What a drag

on their view! So much death in the way of their due,

I want to see clear blue seas, not you! Get out of

my way, I’m closing the doors shutting the window

cranking the thermostat to blue, now you won’t see

me and I can’t see you.