Poems January 2008
New
You’ve heard?—incredible! A second moon!
How was it discovered, then? No one?
No … No … I’ve not seen it, either. “Zither-
silver,” whatever that means. The azimuth
is indeterminate, whatever that means.
Why can’t they speak English? What use in a moon
you can’t court by? What are “receptor sites”?
They mentioned the blood’s love for carbon monoxide,
by way of example. They say the problem isn’t
optical, exactly. The moon’s unrisen
quality is artifactual
of structures in the ancient brain: one jewel
occupies the setting, so to speak;
the nerves won’t crimp around another. What keeps
it there? Why can’t we blink the old white cinder,
then, surrender
to the new? To see a moon not “new,” but new?
I’m asking me, I’m not asking you.
A Message from the Editors
Support our crucial work and join us in strengthening the bonds of civilization.
Your donation sustains our efforts to inspire joyous rediscoveries.
This article originally appeared in The New Criterion, Volume 26 Number 5, on page 37
Copyright © 2024 The New Criterion | www.newcriterion.com
https://newcriterion.com/issues/2008/1/new