In the last days of wonder when spirits still flew
Where we sat holding hands in half-darkened rooms
Nicola Tesla in the hotel New Yorker
Nursing sick pigeons by the open window
Dreamed of a d**h ray to disintegrate matter
Detected Morse code drom faraway planets
He couldn't stand the touch of hair or of skin
But stroked feathers gently on trembling wings
And drew plans for a camera to photograph thoughts
Vacuum tube lights wireless phones
In the last days of wonder when spirits still flew
Round bubbling test tubes in half-darkened rooms
Edison and Westinghouse in silk brocade
Ate oysters Rockerfeller with French champagne
But Tesla grew thin eating only saltines
Going days in his lab without any sleep
Dreaming of God as an X-ray beam
He was hit by a cab while crossing the street
Lying on his bedspread, he struggled to breathe
The light bulbs exploded, the air filled with wings
In the last days of wonder when spirits still flew
Tesla vacated his half-darkened room