Epidemia: Health Haiku Chapbook

Epidemia

By

Kerry Valkyrie Baldock Kelly

Cholera

Oyster rich, drink poor

Oozing gut, dehydration

Rice rehydration

Smallpox

Prevention from cows

Deadly speckled pox disease

lost to history

Yellow Fever

Aching body, fever

Reprieve, yellow eyed jaundice

Organs fade, the pain

Tuberculosis

Stabbing chest, blood cough

Spreading through developed worlds

Spluttered into air

Influenza

Burning hot, so cold

Muscles sear, throat spikes sore blades

Hacking cough, wet nose

Pertussis

Persistent rough cough

Torn throat scratching suffocates

Puking fits smoother

Ebola

Cells explode, bleeding

Scarlet flow inside and out

Rash, sickness, red eyes

Avian Flu H5N1

Organ system shutdown

Anaerobic failure

Heart suffers, death masks

Tetanus

Jaw locked, muscles twitch

Erupting into spams

Breathing fails, dark

Meningitis

Light burns, rash erupts

Thunder and backfire flare

Amputations blast

Syphilis

Ulceration blind

No room for food, weight plummets

Enlarged nodes, organs

Swine

Frozen heat sweats out

Pneumonia mutated

Tired, worn, fatigued

Bubonic Plague

Fleas spread pussy buboes

Masked bills nursing priests frighten

Now bring out your dead

Leprosy

Unfeeling limbs, thin skin

Weakness paired with sore lumps, bumps

Disfiguring marks

Hepatitis

Liver attacking

Nauseating, languid, limp

Enervated, sick

Malaria

Vector, stung in blood

Shaking with bile, fever

Worn, preventable

Measles

Enshrouded in rash

Conjunctivitis, spiked flush

Speckled stinging throat

Mumps

Puffed cheeks, swollen face

Every muscle ruptures ache

Starving in slumber

Trypanosomiasis

Tsetse fly bites sore

Personality departs

Swollen, sleep, throb, death

HIV

Mutation cheats jabs

Immunity’s sting fails

Protection, stigma

Vaccinations

Controversial

Wiping disease clear away

Necessary, live

Developing World

Donate to save lives

Pharmaceutical kings share

Give a fighting chance

Copyright Kelly Media 2016

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