Without warning: a disquieting silence. 

In dog years 84 so (un)well  

beyond warranty. Less sudden,  

the end of my leaky washer,  

rusting electric stove and not-so-old  

Dad who hung out with death  

in the alcoholway. Mom, like vacuum,  

went without whimper,  

paternal Grandpa with a Bang!  

like Nagasaki and my old Volvo. 

Pandemics play out eventually.    

    Sun  will  conk  out.  

All sorts of things: my pen, isms,  

dinosaurs, civilisations, Carthage,  

Constantinople, First Republic,  

Third Reich, Age of Aquarius. 

Messiahs with use-by dates suck  

up the wealth of nations then, in turn,  

turn to dust that must be bagged up 

                               then (discarded) 

Divine line of prophets,  

Divine Right of kings  

Elijah was hoovered up to heaven –  

     chariot and all! 

Entire less-than-omnipotent gods  

could not resist suction.  

I shuffled out, bought a cheap vacuum  

cleaner with German name  

and Chinese parentage,  

disposed of the dead one  

and all my attachments. 

Pointless to hold on to them.