If Earth really is a Slinky
as a geologist might say
then we’re as small as a pinkie
on Earth’s hand of plates that sway.

Zooming in first are primary P waves
try to beat 225 miles per hour!
earthquakes move in with S waves
secondarily destructing a rocky shower.

If you like the ocean you’ll love to meet Rayleigh
who’ll churn and roll you like the tide coming in
Love’s side to side shaking takes the hands of Rayleigh
collapsing buildings and causing the world to spin.

When an earthquake occurs, who is at fault?
plates move together when pressure mounts
just imagine a shaker full of salt
breaking Earth’s crust as the mantle surmounts

Superman saved the San Andreas Fault
a strike-slip fault along the west coast
where boundaries slide in angry assault
he pushed up the crust without a boast!

In normal and reverse faults, you’re vertical
normal plates diverge and tension gets weak
reverse plates collide with a crack horizontal
forcing compression that leaves Earth bleak.

Under the sea reverse faults thrust up
tsunamis from earthquakes worse than on land
the plates dive under–you might say subduct
going back into the palm of Earth’s hand.

You may think Earth is as hard as a rock
but geologists tell you it’s more like elastic
rebound theory stresses a fault that’s locked
friction and energy cause a quake that’s fantastic.

If Earth really is a Slinky
as a geologist might say
human beings are quite dinky
in the cycle of plates that sway.