As Above, So Below, Poetry

As Above, So Below

~A Reflection on the Transient Nature of Beauty

The night sky glimmers with a thousand stars, or more,

Flickering in and out of sight like the curious stares of so many darting fish

as they glance out from the undisturbed surface of the pond,

Then plunge back into the inky depths of the unknown,

where no light violates that beautiful, ancient empire.

Occasionally, a star will rush across the motionless pool of black,

Leaving in its wake a tail of blazing white.

Like a mayfly, its short-lived splendour graces the scene for but a moment, and is gone,

A hundred times more brief yet more lovely than any treasures prized by Man.

In the night sky, too, like the beautiful pond, hangs the elegant moon,

Glowing golden-white in the star-scattered Heavens;

Rippling gently with a silver hue beneath the flitting mayfly’s gossamer wings.

And above the heads of the marvelling fish, she hovers, holding her silent counsel with the stellar Court.

The sky grows paler, and the stars shy away from the brilliance of the dawning day,

The majesty of the Sun overwhelming the delicate balance, the finely-tuned harmony of the night.

And on the fringe of the pond, the mayfly stills its tired wings, settling for one final rest, as another emerges into the brand new morning,

As still the fish look on, timeless observers of such incalculable wonders as only they know.

March 2012