Starship

Starship

Part 1

Once I believed
that we were angels of a better future.
-- That I was home.

Now, there are only pieces.
I hold each shard painfully,
preferring the pain.

Together, we seemed a force:
Full of truth and beauty,
larger than friendship,
larger than dreams.

And I was part of it.
Pulling, with every fiber of my being,
in the same direction.

I am
not ready to leave,
to never again belong anywhere,
to feel the loss beyond repair.

How can I forgive myself?
How can a person
have such a thing
and lose it?

I loved it the way one loves a person.
And I still crave it, every moment,
like thirst craves water.

Instead I am alone now and empty.
No longer on a starship,
no longer moving
afraid to stand still.

Part 2

Out here in space
nobody wants to leave.
We’re here
by choice,
because something pulled
on the strings of our hearts.

Here, on this ship
We take care of each other
and of ourselves, knowing
that goodness is a choice
we must make anew
every day.

We’re here to fight
for what we believe in.
We fight bravely, and
we fight together.
And we don’t forget
how much we don’t know.

We value truth
and kindness
and courage, above all.
Daring to believe
that one day
the fight will be won.

On this starship
We are brave enough
to think our thoughts
all the way to the end.
We listen to our conscience,
without confusion.

We are here, flying
under the radiant stars.
We use technology
and the light of our minds
to serve with grace
all sentient life.