Sonnet

Sonnet Down among the quarks, things come and go.

I gaze and see reality congeal.

I see the comet crest its orbital flow And slink toward Earth to crush it under heel.

O planet blue, most wonderful, most dear, You're bound to shatter at the powerful strike, As if the quarks themselves hurled heaven clear Of stars, to fall on animals and men alike.

We are alone and genuflect in air And dare not give the sky a second look.

Our longing to be comforted by prayer Is thwarted by our second rate religious books.

So set up rockets and for solace strive.

Come morning we shall see whose left alive.

Carl Estrin