This is the perfect beach to walk at night
Level sand smooth and firm but soft enough
To absorb the impact of my heels and toes
Printing a trail the tide will soon erase.
We walk into the darkness of a national park
Where no light pollution sources blind us
Excepting a commercial trawler not far offshore
And the sky fills with stars we seldom see
The rhythm of the waves sounds beside us
With no human machine noises intruding
Immersing us in the ocean of space out there
Listening to the background whisper of the universe
If you can look into the unfathomable deep distance
Taking the time for your eyes to open wide
Night after night observing how everything moves
That is a vision our ancestors knew by heart
Now the blinking lights of planes high overhead
Attract attention to send a warning to keep clear
As they crisscross the otherwise serene celestial drapery
Wrapping our planet with carbon dioxide contrails
This human activity is a distraction for me
Seeking to expand my limited astronomy knowledge
Finding Saturn at the midpoint between Jupiter and Venus
And Orion appearing on the winter horizon
To notice and realize the way it makes sense
The week aligns us with the phases of the moon
Though the origin of the units of time in the calendar
May be lost on those who cannot see the stars
