Karen An-hwei Lee
And what is young in this universe? Centuries ago,
paper currency in circulation for the first time.
Opera memorabilia, fantastical and conceptual,
ignited overseas.
In the midst of our epoch, a swift comet exploded unseen.
Is the human heart any less healed or scarred
than it was eons ago?
Surely our aspirations are newer than primordial atoms
or galaxy filaments
tracing an elliptical arc to the future –
closer than yesterday, this cardiac nanosecond
brushing clock-ash and star-grit from our lives
most dazzling after sunset –
youngest right now.
Thanks to “2004 Perseid Meteor Shower” by NASA Science News.
http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2004/25jun_perseids2004/