Friday, September 25, 2015

The Kindred of Nebula


image from the guardian.com


The Kindred of Nebula

Adrift in the sky,
An everlasting beauty
Hindered by the breaking dawn
--Nsiki Gwala.

So much to 
struggle with as we stare
into a night sky,

on the desert,
     or in the mountains     
          where stars bloom so thick
                     that the darkness recedes
                          to make room for their brilliance,
          as the mechanism of our soul engine
     begins to thrump like a Viking horn,
thrilled & fueled by the universal
light show.
                       You say that the shining jewels of the heavens
                       are held up by tender titans, God’s squad of
       worker bees--who are sun-blind in daylight,
       can only see after Sol has tangoed below
                       the horizon, bringing day to that
                       other hemisphere.

                       You say that you do not believe in ghosts, & yet here
                       they are;                  planets & suns & satellites
                       long dead;               imploded, exploded, burned out
in spectacular fireworks a billion universes away,
because light itself, one of the fleetest things we
are aware of, is in fact so slow, so lethargic within
the godhead schematic, we find ourselves 
worshipping ghosts, celebrating the deceased.

We are but dust mites
on grains of salt
endeavoring
to fathom quantum physics,
just sentient carbon units
aspiring to soar way beyond
our minuscule galaxy
to reach out, to contact
other forms of life;
God’s other children--our cosmic cousins.

Yet, isn’t it ironic that it takes a humble Jesuit pope
to remind us of both our inherent humanity & our
manifest stupidity, scolding us for molesting the earth
& each other.
                          Astronomy is
                          Not new, but our perceptions
                          of the stars could be.

     

Glenn Buttkus

Posted over on Real Toads
influenced by Kerry's high school student's poems, specifically Nsiki Gwala over at somewhere i have never traveled

11 comments:

De Jackson said...

Well, goodness. You had me at this:
"So much to
struggle with as we stare
into a night sky"

Maude Lynn said...

Outstanding, Glenn! Love this.

Kerry O'Connor said...

I was looking at some of the award-winning astronomical photos of the year earlier this evening so you poem seems an extension of that view I have had of the heavens. You have described man's relationship to the heavens so very well, i feel enlightened and enriched by this poem. Thank you for your participation in this challenge

Rommy said...

I love the sense of wonder and magic in this. You brought out a new layer of poetry in star gazing.

Anonymous said...

This is a gorgeous poem- one to read again and again and each time discover more. The last stanza is a nice slap on the wrist.

brudberg said...

Yes, truly looking into space we are reminded of the past. So much humbleness to realise our minisculeness ;-)

hedgewitch said...

Ghosts have a lot to show us, when we are able to see them. You cover a great deal of ground here. Quite a thoughtful piece.

Outlawyer said...

Hey Glenn, it is so interesting how scale shifts here--big and small, humble and wide-ranging--very thoughtful and hopefully there is a message that will be taken up. Thanks. k.

Hannah said...

Your reading is so enjoyable. I love the science and tales of gods you weave into this piece...really expansive as it should be with the topic at hand...huge! Brilliant.

Margaret said...

tender titans ... Enjoyed the reading after I read through it. Always fun to see where the writer puts the emphasis. I also liked how you brought it current with mention of our humble Pope...

Sherry Blue Sky said...

I. Love. This poem so much!!!!!!!!!!! Brilliant! Love the scolding Pope. He tells it like it is.