The Tuning: I. The Present

For the present there is just one moon, though every level pond gives back another.

But the bright disc shining in the black

lagoon,

perceived by astrophysicist and lover,

is milliseconds old. And even that light’s seven minutes older than its source.

And the stars we think we see on moonless

nights

are long extinguished. And, of course,

this very moment, as you read this line,

is literally gone before you know it.

Forget the here-and-now. We have no time but this device of wantonness and wit.

Make me this present then: your hand in

mine,

and we’ll live out our lives in it.