The astronomer said something dirty to me
By Anna Kegler
“What did you say?” I asked, flustered. None of the words she had said were nasty but all together, they amounted to filth. The astronomer said it again: coronal mass ejection. I shivered. She explained that massive solar flares burst off the sun from time to time. But since Earth is a small target, we rarely get hit. I couldn’t stop looking at her lips. “And what happens if we do get hit?” I asked. She replied “The last big one was in 1859. Telegraph operators worldwide felt electrical shocks and their lines caught on fire. Northern lights glowed all night, everywhere. Even in Cuba. If it happened today, we’d be in big trouble…” I cut her off with “You like trouble?” Just then, every outlet in the building exploded and the lab went dark. I thought she would be impressed. The Aurora Borealis was dazzling in greens and blues. But I hadn’t counted on all the transformers melting and the satellites frying. It took six months to restore power to the East coast, and by then we had lost touch. Someday, I’ll get it right.
Anna Kegler (she/her) is a poet and writer based in Washington, D.C., with roots in Minnesota. She works in nonprofit communications and enjoys Muay Thai, dance, and playing the oboe. She does not enjoy making oboe reeds, but she is persevering.