There is a profound naivety 

in attempting to cage the storm 

after you’ve finished building the lightning rod. 

A breakthrough 

is not a pleasant houseguest 

you can ask to leave 

when the conversation gets awkward; 

it is a permanent resident 

that immediately starts remodeling the house 

without a permit. 

The most volatile substances 

are not kept under lock and key, 

but are loosed into the world 

at the precise moment 

someone declares them "impossible." 

We are less the masters of these new domains, 

and more the reluctant clean-up crew 

of our own inevitable curiosity.