An Abyss of Ills

A common proverbial
Phrase in the time of Sappho
And Alcaeus, Alcaeus

Himself, in fact, using it
In his verse, feeling betrayed
By an ally turned tyrant—

That such a phrase should have been
In common usage thousands
Of years ago, doesn’t it

Work on you like a flywheel
To know? If you’re way too prone
To think in terms of progress,

The persistence of despair
Millenniums dampens that.
If you’re expecting the end

Of all civilization
In today’s abyss of ills,
Some anxiety’s absorbed.