Mega-Galaxies

for Pat

A poem by Elizabeth J. Coleman

A week after astronomers found

six mega-galaxies formed

when time itself began,

I fell in Riverside Park, and a man

on a bike stopped to help.

Each mega-galaxy weighs a billion

times more than our sun.

The guy on the bike, whose button

said, Build Bridges, Not Walls,

wondered about a mini-stroke.

But the doctor in our Buddhist

study group, which met on Zoom

that night said I was fine

if I felt myself falling

at the time.

In the meeting, we spoke

of letting things be,

we six mega-galaxies,

sitting in stillness

side by side, in our tiny squares.

Hear Elizabeth read her poem:

Mega—GalaxiesElizabeth J. Coleman

1:08

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Editor of Here: Poems for the Planet (Copper Canyon Press, 2019), Elizabeth J. Coleman has written several poetry collections, one a finalist for the University of Wisconsin Press prizes. Her poems appear in numerous journals and anthologies. Elizabeth’s forthcoming poetry collection is a finalist for several poetry prizes. Find her on Instagram at @elizabethjcoleman.

Image:

Cafe scenes by Tim Gouw