The Lady Called Progress

She crawled down to the cellar
Her legs tangled around stairs
Like minds tangle around girls
She heard the sound of a train
And she followed it into her head
Passing from right ear to left ear
With no stops in between

She picked up the precious lamp
And her arms wrapped around the bulb
It’s light was still shining bright
She took it to the fire, preparing ashes
She sneezed and fell in, she tried to get out
Out of her mind, individually wrapped
Were little Twinkies, dotting the sky
Making a Milky Way of cream

She climbed back up the stairs
To see the starry night
Her limbs were trailing down
Like seaweed, and fish line
Unseen by the fish
People you may call them
And they were caught on her hooks
Fought they did against her pull
But success was not had

She jumped up to the heavens
And the fish were pulled along
And they landed on the moon
Where they met the first Man
He gave them what they had
And then swept them underneath his rug
And the lady carried on