Falling to Earth - March 28 2023

 

Falling to Earth

March 28 2023

The law of gravity.

Things fall.

We feel weighed down.

Law-abiding body parts

eventually sag,

and even scofflaws tip the scales.

Laws, of course, are compulsory.

And even in space

gravity rules,

because gravity doesn't stop

at the stratosphere.

So an orbiting astronaut

isn't as weightless as he feels;

he is simply in free-fall,

but high enough

not to fall to earth.

So why not a law of gravitas?

Laughter, yes,

but a little more seriousness

seems called for —

more substance, less froth.

And looking down

from low earth orbit

the gravity

of our shared dilemma

can be seen in a single take;

one small

blue and green planet

against the cold black vastness

of outer space.

Where we breathe the same air,

pee where we drink,

and stay where we're put.

The pull of home;

and nowhere else to go.