Hearts at Half-Mast

 
We ran the flag up high, it seemed,
stars spangled against the sky
Of youthful dreams and those we dreamed,
no dream then seemed too high
 
The colors painted the universe
and brightened the earth below
Each wave signaled beyond the first,
each gave its own brave show
 
The flag flew, the breezes blew,
folds rippled a joyous swell
We all did the best we knew,
we all left some tales to tell
 
Now I see a flag at half
grieving for the world  [i]
for sky-fliers’ lives that passed
a public sign unfurled
 
In the cold of nations’ grief,
in the rain of nations’ tears,
the astronauts will fly at brief
to mark their shortened years
 

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An echo of private sorrow
for deaths not generally mourned
a few hearts’ blind tomorrow
some dear hopes still unformed
 
I see that flag and wonder,
where have they gone, and why.
I watch those stars and ponder
how we place stars in the sky
 
And how to sing, how to wave,
how to celebrate,
how to thank, how to save
those private hearts that break
 
                                                            (for C. and G.,  2000s)   


[i]  “List of spaceflight-related accidents and incidents”. Wikipedia.org.  {https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_spaceflight-related_accidents_and_incidents#During_spaceflight}  (accessed January 17, 2022) 
“1 February 2003  –  The Space Shuttle Columbia was lost as it returned from a two-week mission … the spacecraft breaking apart during reentry.”