BY ED NORTHEN
A crescent moon
ushers in the new year
with Venus dangling,
like a participle
from its sculpted tip
My perception says
The moon is larger
Than the star
And both equal in distance
From earth
Though in reality
millions of light years
separate them
and Venus is four times larger
My mind has no capacity
For discerning the expanse
Between them
So it creates an illusion
Like so many things in life
What we perceive
Is not how things actually are
Reality is hidden
From us
So we grapple
In the dark
Looking for slivers of light
Which alter
With the waning moon
NOTE: Ed Northen, a former firefighter, has long waxed poetic about the beauty of the nature that surrounds us. When he doesn't have a pen in hand, you may spot him serving as a courtesy patroller for Blaine County Recreation District's Nordic trails.