Billions and Billions

how many of your beloved stars do you know—
who stare through the cold molasses of night
and whose stories are secretly embedded
inside the glowing cosmic fires of your stories

(or do you know more about earthen rock stars
or trendy people who only gaze up at themselves)

when we learn to appreciate each ancestor’s love
amassed within their own struggles and triumphs
we taste the pleasant primordial ingredients of us
and we ignite the expanding galactic treasures
that fuse their interstellar scaffoldings to support us
every particle of their strength becomes our strength
as we search beyond our inner spheres of doubt
and as we connect with their vast universe of spirits
we flood our suffocating anger and divisions
with infinite divine lights and transcendent hope
we become part of one sprawling—miraculous family
far better equipped to survive life’s challenges
as we absorb the forgotten powers of redemption
because—like them—we learned to forgive others and us
billions and billions of lights now await—to guide us
upon this immense celestial path to natural Godliness

WEBB NGC-604 photo courtesy of NASA and STScI