Conflagration
October 8, 1871
The word of the day is conflagration where the speed of the flame front is subsonic // unlike a detonation where it’s supersonic, as in a fiery explosion // distributing words of blame at faster than Mach one—gossip accelerates faster than any accelerant-to-a-flame can // The word of the day is conflagration as in the large disastrous fire that started that day // Large: A mile wide, four long // Large: 17,500 structures demolished—homes, warehouses, banks // Large: 2112 acres scorched—one-third the city // At least 300 dead; 100,000 left homeless // Conflagration—word of the day // for a hot Chicago fall full of drought—no rain since July—strong winds to fan the flames licking so many with wooden frames... // like a hapless dairy barn with a kerosene lamp // knocked over // An accident // sparked by a scapegoat-cow // An Irish Kerry cow almost entirely black, with a little white on the udder // and white horns with dark tips // belonging to an Irish immigrantor was it a German Jew // A better story for the Tribune than gambling // with the truth—the word of the day // was not the truth because lies detonate and spread faster and burn // the soul of humanity // Blame is inflammatory // more disastrous // Blame kindled // by bigotry // smolders for a while // then the flaring—the ignition—the conflagration // Conflagration // the word of the day.
John C. Mannone
John C. Mannone has poems in Anthology of Appalachian Writers XV [Barbara Kingsolver] and XVI [Ann Pancake], Red Branch Review, Windhover, North Dakota Quarterly, Poetry South, Baltimore Review, and others. He was awarded a Jean Ritchie Fellowship (2017) in Appalachian literature and served as the celebrity judge for the National Federation of State Poetry Societies (2018). His full-length collections are Disabled Monsters (Linnet’s Wings Press, 2015), Flux Lines: The Intersection of Science, Love, and Poetry (Linnet’s Wings Press, 2022), Song of the Mountains(Middle Creek Publishing, 2023, nominated for the Weatherford Award), and Sacred Flute (Iris Press, 2024). He edits poetry for Abyss & Apex and other journals. He’s a professor of physics teaching mathematics and creative writing in an East Tennessee high school.
Books
- Disabled Monsters
- Flux Lines: The Intersection of Science, Love, and Poetry
- Sacred Flute
- Song of the Mountains
More: http://jcmannone.wordpress.com
Comments
Good to see John still going strong and remaining validly talented. he was always more patient with modern form than I and put sthat to good use here.
Yes indeed, the word of the day blazed through the page of poetic history. Thanks John.