Lost In Space...

fiction
poetry

I watched the sunrise this morning
There are currently 14 people in space.
Ten orbiting the Earth.
Four orbiting the Moon.

Fourteen people who have escaped the pull of gravity
The relentless tug of the world around them.

They will come back changed.
Molecular changes.
One twin in space, one on earth, no longer identical.
Time moves differently.

They will see the world.
The WHOLE world.
See there are no artificial lines.
No boundaries between countries.

They will watch storms circle
No stopping to check ID
No skipping this place or that because of differences
Different color, different religion

The storms just move through
Unbothered. There is no difference

When they come home they will try
They will try to explain what they saw
How it made them feel
How fragile it all seemed from up there

And how beautiful it all was
Brilliant blues and greens
Giant clouds streaming
The puzzle pieces all clear in how they fit

Eventually they will give up
We can never understand

I watched the sunrise this morning
And I envied those fourteen
And then I pitied them
To be free, to know, and then to lose

I think I might wish I had remained
Lost and yet found in space