Antlophobia

"How does repeated exposure to disasters and extreme 
weather events affect mental health?" ~ from  
"22. Southeast, Key Topic 3: Health and Well-Being," 
NCA5 Zero Order Draft



In the deep interior, the gears of each of our  
impossible machines. Which way do they turn?

They set off  their own weather in response
to the world: counterclockwise, El Niño; 

its twin, slashing a different path across 
the sea. Tonight, soft pellets of rain. 

Tomorrow, the drupe peels open 
to the ovary. Even the smallest hermit 

crabs go crazy in sudden heat. If you held 
your ear to the cool shadows in a library, 

perhaps you might hear the faraway 
clicking of hooves, the rustle of bellies 

pressing through forest cover. Thrown
into the water-filled bowl of the world, 

sealed within a creaking hull of old 
lumber, the dove still trapped in its cage 

trembles at the thought of being sent 
out to bring back proof of dry land.