1949

1949

Dissecting the Rat

I am recording today's experiment.
I write down the word  "rat".
It's a category.

I say the word.
but it's not the real rodent
that used to rattle around cage three.

This sound "rat".
This slight movement of air,
can only create a sense of absence.

When I walked into the laboratory this morning
I saw a rat radiant in the shining sun.
I named him Daniel.

There can be no god.
Religions were a necessary phase.
Scientific experiment is the way forward.

Through the gas chamber’s frowzy glass
I observed the rat's final moments.
It didn’t seem to suffer.

I had not watched the gassing proceedure before,
choosing rather to lay out the instruments
and watch the clock.

But as the scalpel’s sure blade
layed bare the inner organs of the rat
I experienced a sudden sense of sadness .

1949