Caroline Herschel

Caroline Herschel

William and I live in Slough;
I chart all the stars,
Mapping the million points of light
For the future reference
Of humanity. He does all the talking
From the top of the scaffold
Supporting his observatory.

He discovered Uranus in Bath,
We laughed about that of course;
The planet, I said, would bring him posterior fame,
In fact it brought a knighthood
And security. Now we plough the black sky fields,
With the telescope I helped to build,
Diminishing infinity.

Sometimes in the deep Slough night
When William is in slumber
I go and climb the telescope
To see if I can find my own planet,
And equality. I'll name it Aphrodite and hope
That William doesn't get the joke,
According to mythology.

First published in Envoi 123