Babel

By Kimberly Phinney

We are builders

of glass towers,

and echo is our holy act—

bent over babbling

in infinite jest

we worship,

together and alone.

We say, Come, let us reach

the sky

with our stacked

mirrors

In time,

we will take the unknowns

captive,

and bend them

as we’d like.

We defeat the silence

with our

clicking

and shared sounds,

as we erect

this new world—

a universe

to hold.

We beat our chests

in victory,

we modern warriors

of this earth—

as we subdued

all living things

behind our screens.

Oh, it is a calling—

this great landscape

by design—

our infinite finitude,

a footprint

that rivals

God.

We know it so well,

we do not need to wonder.

For we are fine jewels—

all flattened, cut,

and shined

the same.

But, we revel!

Yes, we sing our songs,

play our harps and dance,

and slap our hands together

so loud and long

for all to hear our

greatness

that we do not often

think

that we

are soon to be

c o n f u s e d.

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Kimberly Phinney is a professor of English, counselor, and writer. She’s been published in Ekstasis, Fathom, Humana Obscura, Truly Co, Radix, The Dewdrop, and more. A doctoral candidate in community care and counseling, she holds an M.Ed. in English and studied at Goddard’s MFA program in Creative Writing. She was featured on Good Morning America for a national award and teaching her students through critical illness. Visit her literary community at www.TheWayBack2Ourserlves.com and on Instagram at @thewayback2ourselves.