There Are Treasures Above Us - A poem of time off the streets

Amid the banks of smog,
the lights of streets and homes
combine with those from the businesses
to wash out the stars.

So, it is a treat
to escape the city at times
and see the splendor of night
tossed across Heaven's great vault.

This was my holiday treat,
a trip out off the streets
deep into the less populated lands
to close out a cabin.

There I looked up happy,
watching Orion rise above the mountains
even his bow strings showing clearly
through the atmospheric disturbance twinkles.

Found my glasses need replacing
as only six stars I counted
when gazing into Pleiades cluster carefully
where once I saw seven.

Letting my eyes dance across
following the vast white Milky Way
from east to west while grinning,
my smile wreathed in smoke.

The folks chided bad habits
not realizing what I indulged in
that night was not the pipe,
but the beauty of night.

Later, I went out again,
looking east to Bear River Mountains
and seeing the Hunter's dogs rising
Sirius now clearing that dark horizon
and hints of Procyon's coming.

I moved westward with eyes,
seeking other old friends up there.
Seeking the bull facing ol' Orion,
and the Hyades wide 'V'.

Then over to the hill
which cloaked most of Cygnus
save brilliant Deneb, still circling around
on her path across sky.

And just to the south
lay the window to the Universe
where four stars mark the corners
holding in distant, old galaxies.

Each star has a name
though my memory has lost most
even ones I once knew well,
but the years stole away.

I wanted to look north,
but terrain and the cabin's bulk
blocked everything beyond Cassiopeia's crown
and Perseus with his devil-star.

A few faint meteor tails
creased the night's deep black occasionally,
amid the brilliant and dim lights
I view as Yule's lights.

When I gave up, chilled,
I walked back inside, tweaking words
into what you read here now,
hoping they can move you.

The stars are my friends,
never really leaving me all alone,
just shoved aside by others pollutions
that they claim prevents crime.

Me, I think folks forget
the greatest treasures we all possess
are the memories of Nature's shows
walking through our lives constantly.

So, next time you travel
if it is in the night,
pull off the road you travel
look up, and collect treasures...

...and share them with family,
friends, or just some passer-bys.
You'll keep the joy and wonder,
finding it easier to carry
than most other treasured items.
29November2013 - Dyfedd Rex