The Atom

The glory of the atom

Begs a reverent word

The primary design

Of the whole universe

Yes, let us sing its praises

Let us bow our heads in prayer

At the magnificent consciousness

Incarnate there

The smallest unit of matter

With its orbiting electrons

Echoing off the solar system

Like a hawk in the hills at dawn

The smallest unit of matter

Uniting bird and rock and tree

And you and me

Oh holy is the atom

The truly intelligent design

To which all of evolution

Is graciously aligned

The one single structure

To which everything distills

The air

The wood smoke there

And the hills

Leave me here surrounded

By everything that's real

Far outside the boundaries

Of the digitized ordeal

Leave me here awake

Leave me here to heal

Human beings are a cross

Between monkeys and ants

You can see us from your spaceship

Melting the polar ice caps

With our arrogance

Summon a congress of angels

Dressed in riot gear

We got ourselves a serious situation

Down here

I have this great great uncle

Who worked on the atomic bomb

He got a nobel prize in physics

And a place in this song

And i bet there were no windows

And no women in the room

When they applied themselves

To the pure science of

Boom

Yes, messing with the atom

Is the highest form of blasphemy

Whether you are making weapons

Or simple electricity

Someone fashion me a pulpit

I have been called to engage

With the maniacal heretics

Of the nuclear age!

Let the religious get religion

Let consumers get a clue

Let scientists get perspective

Let activists get their due

Let industry get a conscience

Let the earth inherit the meek

Let the divinity of nature speak

The glory of the atom

Begs a reverent word

The primary design

Of the whole universe

Yes, let us sing its praises

Let us bow our heads in prayer

At the magnificent consciousness

Incarnate there