JOUR FIXE

by Jeffrey Park

He knows how to make an entrance
you really have to give him that –
strides into the room, feet clanking,
thorax gleaming with condensation.

Magnetic fields ripple and shimmer,
pacemakers skitter, dental fillings expand,
crack, fluorescent lights brighten
for an instant before sputtering to
a respectful grey.

With a low-pitched whine he swivels
his slotted visage, takes in the attendees,
weighing, assessing, bathing them
in his steady ultraviolet regard.
A steely smile.

Agenda:
Carbon-Based Life, Pros and Cons.
And the meeting comes to order.