Amazing all the ways the world
is ending. The ice caps melting
at the poles, sea levels threatening
Venice, Jakarta, New Orleans—
will they still have Mardi Gras
when Bourbon Street’s underwater?
Oil spills, wildfires, trains derailing.
Ukraine, Sudan, Yemen. Bodies in the streets.
Don’t say gay in Florida or be it in Uganda.
The smart move is keep your mouth shut
& have your epitaph ready. Even some mornings
when it feels like things aren’t so bad after all,
you catch a glimpse of your reflection
in your smartphone screen & Morgan
Freeman’s voice says Hope is a dangerous thing
& you prepare for the worst & forget
the other part. Even when you turn off
your phone off for the night & close your eyes,
you can still see the screen glowing in the dark,
beaming every bad tiding in your direction—
cops swinging batons, kids jumping off bridges,  
killer bees swarming, Burmese pythons
breeding in the Everglades, alligators
creeping from the lake.