On Not Seeing the Northern Lights

Cherry

By Philip Sidney

Fri, 10 Apr 2015
  • 2445 reads
13 comments
 

I never have seen the Northern Lights,

you sent pictures from your garden

after I had left,

beautiful, but you said

an image cannot capture how it mesmerises

with its shifting shades and movements

dancing in the sky.

 

I have never seen the Northern Lights,

I have sat on black volcanic sand 

and looked inside a paua shell

at opalescence which,

in its flow from eye to mind,

made my heart trip

the light fantastic.

 

I have never seen the Northern Lights,

your clear dark nights have been lit,

on that long walk home,

with aurora swirling

her enchanted paint brush,

playful, powerful,

dressed in regal velvet.

 

I have never seen the Northern Lights,

I have watched storms out at sea,

cyclones of water rising to meet

a palette of bruised sky,

rainbows caught between

shafts of light in battle

with the elements.

 

I have never seen the Northern Lights,

I have seen in the northern light

an absence of artificial glare,

cold bright exposure, so

my angle of illumination

has been altered,

everything is iridescent.

Certificate U
Poem

Comments

Submitted by Rhiannonw on

A lovely play on the palette of light and colour and shade, culminating in the last verse as a memorial to a land of less artificial light, despite its increased darkness, and a learning to appreciate the shades of light. Rhiannon

 

Submitted by Philip Sidney on

Thanks Rhianon.

Submitted by EB on

Beautiful words and images in this. Feeling slightly sad by the end.

Submitted by Philip Sidney on

Thanks for Reading EB. :)

Submitted by celticman on

It's like the ending to Blade Runner. A positive in the negativity of seeing what we have not seen, but... 

 

Submitted by Philip Sidney on

Thanks celticman. :)

Submitted by Geoff Smith on

This is a strong one Philip - it's really good. I love it's direct accessibility. I've never seen (or heard of) a paua shell which I think I'd like to see even more than the Northern Lights. You're good at endings and the ending here is another example of that. Good show.

Thanks for reading. I am grateful for your time.

Submitted by Philip Sidney on

Glad you like it Geoff!  Thanks for the compliment. smiley

Submitted by jeand on

Hi Helen

Beautiful poem - so full of imagery. You'll have to go back again to try again for the northern lights. But how true it is that looking into a paua shell gives such a wonder of colour. I'm afraid I have a house full of pauas we brought back from New Zealand so they are soap dishes and trinket trays in every room.

And how true it is that the sky seems so much blacker and the stars so much more impressive without artificial light to compete. We found that in our little seaside cottage in rural Norfolk too. But also staying in a caravan in the mountains in Tekapo in New Zealand. It was magic walking around at night there.

Jean

 

Jean Day

Submitted by Philip Sidney on

Thanks Jean.  The world's a pretty wonderful place. :)

Submitted by Philip Sidney on

thank you so much everyone for reading!  Will send individual thanks when I have more connectivity.smiley

 

Submitted by orangiejuice on

What a strong poem! I adore the imagery. 

✪

Submitted by Philip Sidney on

Thanks Angie! smiley