MODERN MYTHOLOGY

by David Feela


    Only three twists left
in this labyrinth
    of a line inching forward

like an intestine,
    then I’ll reach the spot
where Homeland Security

    calls me forward to ask
if i have anything to declare
    and I’ll say yes,

I declare this line to be
    a mockery of what
our soldiers died for,

    this uniformed demigod
with a magic wand
    detecting our fears;

I declare there is vigilance
    more fatal than death,
searches and seizures

    of most improbable cause,
and I declare categorically
    unquestionable authority

is the terrorist we seek
    in the shape of a Hydra,
a writhing cold-blooded

    protocol not even Hercules
could have vanquished
    without a sharp object.


David Feela's work has appeared in hundreds of regional and national publications. His first full length poetry book, The Home Atlas, is now available.
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