One Night Poem by Bill Galvin

The air is cool and still,
But not yet a true New England autumnal chill.

The peepers and crickets,
They sing the last of their season's songs;
A duck quacks twice in nearby reedy thickets,
While a bright moon glides along,
Across a clear starlit sky…
And he's seen enough, he's felt enough,
To never again need to wonder why.

A moody Mark Knopfler supplies
Musical backdrop and subdued insight,
While a quiet outdoor fire
Gives off a warm yellow light
That offsets the welcome, but cool, shine
Of full October moonlight tonight.

Air so still,
His smoke-rings drift off and afar…
Up and away toward that big moon,
Maybe to lasso one or two or more stars;
Maybe to linger a moment more for to savor,
Before becoming part of that timeless vapor.

Artistic clouds form from nothing,
And they brush themselves
Near to the full-faced man-in-the-moon,
And he throws upon them lighted accents…
Like a museum mural in a large room.

Some will sleep, some may waken…
Some make certain beauty lies not forsaken…
Some will seek, others may not try
To see what is painted onto a dark night sky;
Whether we've seen enough, or felt enough,
Whether or not we need to wonder why.

A coyote makes his plaintive call from darkened woods,
And the dampness of dew is forming early.

And this is just…
One night.

October 6,2017