Tesla’s Hotel Room

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 death ray
 To disintegrate matter
 Detected Morse code
 From 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