Oops
A massive diesel drill rig
has toppled into the river.
Rain undermined the plank
roadway, the caterpillar treads
flailed, and a mudslide tripped
the rig into shallow water.
This drill didn’t just stumble.
You can see how the stonework
collapsed and allowed the crude
temporary road to slip away.
Hardhats stand around gazing
with disgust. Bridge construction
will halt for days or weeks while
the most powerful wreckers
trundle from deep in Ohio
or as far away as Alaska
to shoulder this helpless monster
upright on its mucky footing.
Luckily no one was hurt,
but our collective industrial
confidence has been shattered.
You claim that if everyone
properly read D. H. Lawrence
we would never mess with machines
I agree we’re all guilty of crimes
against nature and humanity,
but if the right words could absolve us
wouldn’t I be first to apply them
to dings and dents in the universe
and make my mark forever?
