One Small Poem for Mankind
Where does time go to after it makes a pass or two at you?
Either we’re a multi-planet species, out here among the stars, or we’re a single planet species until we wing it from here to Mars
Out in the stars, you’d think it’s night, but there are stars all day, every day, once you’re far enough away from the sun. Planet to planet is a practice run for sun to sun, but what about the time it takes?
The engineer said with a straight face, “The time it takes?”
“Yes,” she said, “what about the time it takes to go from place to place out in space?”
“If they’re far apart, I wouldn’t start out with some heathen who’s part of the planet I’m leaving, I’d send an AI not bored to tears playing Go for a thousand years or so.”
“How can I go though? Fish didn’t evolve onto land in aquariums, I know, so we’ll have to evolve ingenious ways to live in phase, a life in place and a life in space.”
Dig the graves, scatter the ashes, time passes until you are the light.
