Anand Atre is an alum of the MLA Program at Johns Hopkins University.
poetry
Relics
Anand Atre, Johns Hopkins University
I
Astrolabe of Nineveh, a golden disc of hammered bronze,
Charting stars and comet-fire on parchment, aged and worn,
With zodiac wheels and copper wire,
Silent watchers keep,
While their heavenly maps lie torn.
II
Ironclad of Manchester, with pistons of polished brass,
Weaving empires’ tarnished dreams in gears that grind and burn,
With spinning cogs and hissing steam,
Factory whistles screech,
While the smokestacks blackly churn.
III
Microchip of Silicon, with fractured code and sleepless eye,
Harvesting our waking thoughts in digital undertow,
With neural nets and endless scrolls,
Phantom servers hum,
While our minds begin to slow.