The Guesser

Ancient, he guessed humanity
would make the best use of his gift.
He guessed incorrectly, watching
as they first stoked the flame,
then used it for heat, to cook meat.
But then a sudden change.
They began to use it on each other.
Centuries later, another god, this one
robed in tatters of malevolent intent,
showed the fragile creature how to split
an atom. There could be no other reason
but the instant immolation of a species.

J. D. DeHart is the author of the chapbook, "The Truth About Snails". His blog is jddehart.blogspot.com, and he is a staff writer for Verse-Virtual.

Find more by J. D. DeHart in the Author Index.

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