Lizol in India

71. Lizol in India

by K. MacMichael (poem number 71 from last year’s poetry project)

I never knew this cheerful yellow spray bottle this way

all the ways it has been used since 1889

I just recently learned

from a guy on youtube

it is meant to be diluted before spraying to sanitize

which I’ve doing on and off for decades

full strength

no one I know has died as a result but

rumour has it in 1911

drinking it was a popular way to kill yourself

coming to its own during the Spanish Flu epidemic

advertising in the 30’s suggested it as contraceptive

and abortifacient

leading to renal failures, sepsis and (obviously) death

the mix I use is an all-purpose concoction

born one year after me

it contains chemicals suspected of causing cancer and

damaging organs through prolonged or repeated exposure

such as more people than ever experienced

just recently

and I figure I will use up the bottles I already have

anyway.