A Life of Transcendence

One night, a mountain blew out of the sea,
Just like that, without any clear warning—

Just the normal seismographic jitters
Then, boom, chaos, new land in the ocean,

While the displaced water rushed everywhere—
Tsunamis ashore, hot steam in the air.

Coastal cities were swamped on either side.
The aftershock earthquakes went on for months.

All the continents felt spasmodic tics.
All the disaster records were reset.

New waves of refugees rolled everywhere.
Governments toppled. Whole peoples despaired.

Then finally the worst of it was past,
And the Earth had a new tallest mountain

That towered into the sky and burbled,
And dribbled lava down its flanks, and hissed.

Now what? Weather and life got on with it.
A few unnecessary wars were fought.

With each year, more snow and mountain climbers
Accumulated from the summit down.

Earth filled with survivors’ descendants.
Some lived on the slopes of Mt. Transcendence.