Achievement

The wheel and the chariot. The lever,

the nail, the spirit level. That moment

when the earth was unseated as center 

of the universe, after who knows how  

many scientists were publicly condemned 

for pointing out the sun. The feather 

and the ball, dropping at the same rate 

due to gravity. The compass and the caravelle,

navigation by the stars. The printing press,

moveable type, sewing needles. Pasteurized 

milk and clean hands in the surgery. With each 

discovery, how we then proclaimed a new 

pinnacle of human success. Pyramids and 

pagodas, spices and sugar; lower death 

rates, cures for most things except

the common cold, avarice, cruelty, and 

ego. Who wants the gold medal at the end 

of this race? The athlete crumples onto

concrete in a spasm of joy and pain.