The Machine Will Not Stop

THE MACHINE WILL NOT STOP
lifting nor the light
wilt new things
the crank case full of speed
is black with grease
jaw piston locked
to the street

restless reconnaissance
menu magazine disk
fish tank stocked
with bug eye bloats
dayglo dorsals on the beat

it will not stop
though dry gears squeak
and bolts rattle loose
it turns till it grinds
out spurs and burns out
blind governors
fly wheels fiddle
while it doesn’t sleep
turbine delivers
toxic heat

the machine will not stop
driving our unwinding sheet
slick double clip
spine of the freak
spliced to the sign
of the pelican beak

Jackhammer triggers sparks
that shiver arc and bloom
assassination suicide Armageddon
swell up every thought balloon

it will not stop
though thermal pulse
catch metal trees in nets
and scumbled codes
collide in clouds
and everyone forgets

great orchestrations
fill the sky
no light penetrates
the peace