the two main ingredients to
reaching overnight fame
are a mass minded media
and a damn catchy name..
the fear smear spread quickly
and soon each runny nose
became utmost alarum..
'look out! thar she blows!'
the virus sought weakness,
as all viruses will,
and it fed on a species
which fed largely on swill..
but such is the nature
of all common strains,
though we strive to erase them,
the microbes ever maintain
their place in the shaping
of our immuno-defenses..
to think to outpace them
we must delude our own senses..
believing mankind is greater
than the natural laws
of survival, selection,
and no dis-ease without cause..
so we line up in clinics,
become numbers, not names,
and we bow down to Tami
like it's all just a game
in which the vaccine is christed..
it will cleanse all our souls
of the sickness which fills us..
we consume to feel whole.
let it now be remembered
that our ways will bring death,
and that true hope comes only
from the love of each breath
which is shared in between us
and shared with the earth..
though many have fallen,
we all wait rebirth.
Author notes
swine flu! 
s u d o n i m h
A contest entry
- The Very Prestigious & Fashionable To Be Seen Entering, "Drink Moxie..." Group Contest (Members Only) by Yemassee.
1212 points, ended November 13, 15 entries
Honorable mention
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Comments
1 - 19 of 19
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Yes, so many people are terrified with the idea of getting contaminated with that virus. Every coughing or sneezing is reason to panic..stay away from pepper
Quite and amusing and yet well thought poem you have here
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for months, not a day has gone by without hearing some new thing about the epidemic..it grows tiresome. what of all the other flu strains?..and common colds?..no coverage for those though they might claim as many lives..but we do love our hysterias.
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catchy title.
Love the rhythm, this is cleverly versed. It is always fun to read your poetry and I'm glad you entered.
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oh the poor wee piglet!..cast adrift and made ignoble by his own fellows..a picture worth a thousand words indeed...a catchy title for a catchy topic..half the town is now bunked down with le bug..and i amongst..sigh..theres a fair bit of irony in that, methinks..
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A rather unique poem, and a combination of fun and seriousness on a very serious matter.
A good piece Good luck in the contest
Dee
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"life is too important to be taken seriouly"..an anonymous quote on a magnet on my fridge..one which has come to mean a great deal to me over the years.
i am glad you enjoyed this write dee..it is always a pleasure to share words with other poetic sprits.
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petite piques...
Ahhh the small needles they do stick into us eh? Good to see the lines were enough to inspire. -
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the needles stick in my craw..but never in my arms.. frustration with the societal machine is ALways a grand source of inspiration pour moi..fuel for the fire.
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very unique!
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merci mango!..unique has long been a favorite word..ever since i learned its meaning.
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What I like is that you've treated the flu like a person, giving it human qualities, at least for us to imagine in the beginning.
And in a way it is...I mean, we generated the hysteria making it well known with that catchy name. If it had begun as H1N1 it probably wouldn't be half as well known or worried about.
I've yet to bow down to Tami. I want to see if anyone dies from the vaccine first, lol. Yes, I wait rebirth but lets make it later rather than sooner. In my mind I'm still young and I want to be here at least another 35 years.
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well even those microscopic individuals in our midst are living things..it is good to treat all living things wiht a certain level of respect..whether they are sentient or not..im not actually so sure they aren't ..had some interesting conversations with my own fevered illness last night..they have a plan!
we share sentiments on the Tamidrug..no way am i putting some newfangled bugspray into my veins before long term effects are fully uncovered..good call, matey!..arrrrrr..
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Ah, Sudo-C-J--If we could but go to your clearing
breathe in the clear air of the trees,
and be strengthened and heartened
and free of disease!!!!
Great, headlines poeticized to the screen!
Aes
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oh aes...i wish everyone could have their own little clearing to go to..perhaps we would then all find some sense of inner strength with which to heal..that being said, i have actually recently been felled by the flu..perhaps not THe flu, but fluishness nonetheless..went full blown yesterday, but seems to have abated a great deal today..perhaps there is something to be said for fresh air.
if only those headlines could make the papers...im tired of reading the same news every day..
cj -
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Oh, dear Charli-J---I hope your symptoms
lessen quickly---assisted by your powers
that can take you to the clearing, if
only via your mind. Hoping you have a
supply of herbals to strengthen your
bod as well as your spirit!
Take care, so you can work on improving those headlines!
Love and hugs,
Aes
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Great title and well written piece CJ. All the media focus has instilled such fear of the swill version just like it did for the chicken who never showed up for dinner. To take the shot or not take the shot...I had the yearly vaccine and had a reaction for the first time. I think I'll take my chances with outrunning the pig.
I liked the rhyme scheme you have running through your topical poem.
Good luck in the contest.
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peehee.."the chicken who never showed up for dinner"..i recall that round of hoopla..the "practice pandemic".
the thing with getting the shot is the ridiculous clinic waits..had to take my nanny charge (4 yr old asthmatic) for his on thursday..three hours later, having shared air with hundreds of panicked people, i started to feel a bit..off. now i'm sick. moral being..stay away from the clinics!!..
grazie pixi!
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A good poem!
I did enjoy this poem of yours ... the title had me wondering what it was about and so I dove in and as each line moved me further along I was glad that I started to read it. I particularly enjoyed how you wrapped it all up with the best medicine of all and the anticipation that we are recycled! Nice sharing. joy
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the description of your reading experience is just how i also felt while writing this piece. at the onset, i was unsure if it were possible to encapsulate my feelings on the subject, but after the title popped into mind round the sixth line, it all went down smoothly..
i love your giant pumpkins, joy...nature's epitome of the spirit of this season.
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