The Mouth of Hell

metal towers and smoke-
stacks	omphalos semi-
circular balls storage
tanks	cylinders
Jacob's ladder
eternal flame chimney
steel turrets
fretwork interlacing
steel

smell	sulphur
acid air
black rain
unnatural clouds
breathing metallic
grey grit on skin
unnatural heat as you
near the flame tower
water greasy shiny
purple and blue-
green swirls
limp weeds brown grass
rust	disused trucks

rubble
gleaming spurs
	walkways
		tin hats
emptiness
bank balance
	mounts
telephone line to the
past to soft hands
soft voice the
	fires of home
thick curved chimneys
narrow ones
tall	white

grey blocks of buildings
symmetrical windows
yellow foam
	scum
			
blue hull of a ship docked
ropes
chains
boxes like pills
all the ills