"Although the Richter Scale has no upper limit, the largest known shocks have had magnitudes in the 8.8 to 8.9 range...."
-- USGS
to ride an 8.8 earthquake
you wouldn't like it
you'd hear a roar like a freight train
100 stories tall coming straight on
the solid ground would be roiled
as if you were in a heavy sea
a shaking would be so severe
you would be blown off your feet
furniture and other objects are flying into you
as bodies
ricochet off the walls and floor
and all you can do while the shaking lasts
is to lay wherever you are and try
to hold onto the ground
while the house or building above you
most likely collapses crushing you to death
in a few seconds all is dark
if you are still alive after the first shock
you dig out full of blood
as far as you can see will be ruins
screams and a horrible smoke
you sit there coated in dust choking
hearing trapped people cry for help
the buildings begin to burn
incenerating anyone alive in the ruins
what is it like to come to the conclusion
that earth has no feeling for you
alive or dead
but then at the same time earth!
we come from you and go back to you
that is all there is
2 comments:
A few years back, I lived in Salem, OR when an earthquake hit Washington State. Though far from the epicenter, I still felt it. Not a lot mind you, but I did feel it.
It was one of the most discombobulating feelings I've ever felt and I had sincerely hoped I would never feel it again. But I felt it again today when I read your poem.
There's a noise too, when the earth shakes -- furniture and other possessions beating on the walls as the structure trembles -- a rapid rhythmic bumping that happens in cycles, a sound I will never forget.
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