The galaxies, the stars, and the planets provide the inspiration for several of Cathy’s poems. The NESTER has featured three of these poems, QUESTIONS FOR THE STARS, LUNAR NEW YEAR, and THE MOON YOU NEVER SEE. Cathy titled one of her books, IF THE MOON CAME OUT ONLY ONCE A YEAR.
Like many of her poems, in THE RED PLANET it’s important to carefully read the stanzas prior to the final stanza. A twist in content reveals a thought worth pondering after finishing the poem, and could inspire a second reading.
THE RED PLANET
Long ago, ancient Romans
noticed that the third planet
from the sun glowed red,
as if it were drenched in blood.
They named it Mars
after their god of war,
who loved violence and slaughter
and the blood of battle.
We call our third month March
in his honor. Latin roots
give us martial, as in martial law,
and mar, as in mark or harm.
His temple in Rome
lies in broken ruins now,
but I think the god of war
still rules our world,
calling men to march into battle
at the slightest offense,
to escalate any disagreement
into armed conflict.
When beings in far-off galaxies
peer at earth through telescopes,
do they ever notice our planet glows red,
as if it were drenched in blood?
to read Cathy’s previous poem in the Nester, O’ CHRISTMAS TREE – click here
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