By Jacqueline Seewald

The Gregor Mendel of his time,
immortal in his work,
progressing in his project,
oblivious to hunger or fatigue,
working at his machine,
the big, metallic one,
he uses for DNA sequencing.
His eyes glitter with purpose.
He is one with the machine.
He is the creator
of genetically altered creatures,
cows, bees, cats, dogs –
even human beings,
perfect and sublime.
Genome improves on nature.
And she is perfect now,
no more the vague shadow of herself.
Time the cruel thief had stolen
her beauty and clarity of mind.
How he had missed her!
How he had missed their intimacy of communication.
His hands tremble as he surveys his Galatea.
No mythological revelation
but human genome history,
his lovely wife perfect again.

Genome

Jacqueline Seewald

Jacqueline Seewald’s short stories, poems, essays, reviews and articles have appeared in hundreds of publications and anthologies. Her most recent poems can be found in the anthologies Wisdom of Our Mothers and Holiday Writes, as well as You and Me Medical Magazine. She has also published 12 books, including mystery novels The Inferno CollectionThe Drowning Pool, and The Truth Sleuth in the Kim Reynolds series. Find out more about her at http://www.lldreamspell.com/JacquelineSeewald.htm.