S.P. Flannery - Two Poems

Delirium

Mercury and manganese extracted
from the limestone aquifer with
water potable written on pipes
fed to fountains and faucets
unfiltered drunk and mixed,
precipitates into solid masses,
nodules that adhere to tissues
and connect with the nervous system
afraid of the madness transmitted
when dendrites extend to communicate
between inorganic metals spread
across the consciousness of people
paranoid, torn between the opinions
or lies of a zealous yellow press,
and the bold incompetence of engineers.



Vertical Chamber Apparatus

Placed in the inverse crown
of a metal pyramid
I try to climb the sides
that thwart futile efforts
and plunge into a pit of despair
distilling depression out
from hope instilled
by the nuclear family
loving bonds to stave off insanity
now I can view
through a wire mesh grill
while sitting at the bottom
of this trapezoid trap
huddling in the corner
and waiting for cold hands
to place me back with kin
in a deceased wife's experiment.



S.P. Flannery was born in La Crosse, Wisconsin, and now resides in Madison. His poetry has appeared in Random Acts of Writing, Merge, The Powhatan Review, Poetry Salzburg Review and Calliope Nerve.