MOON’S VARICOLORED CHARM
-
Sreelekha Chatterjee (India)
The land where man set foot has
remained the greatest wonder—
“One small step for a man, one giant
leap for mankind.”*
Closest heavenly body to Earth,
visible in the night sky for three
weeks in a month,
its gray–white, lustrous light escorts
all in the dark.
Referring to it as a maternal uncle to
a child who refuses to sleep,
the kid’s mind awash with pleasant
thoughts
soon falls asleep, recalling the
enjoyment of avuncular indulgence.
Living beings are believed to show
eccentric behavior
during a phase of the full moon,
exhibiting its exceptional glow;
hamsters spinning aggressively, out of
control;
deer and other herbivores ovulate;
mating time for colonial, marine
invertebrates, and more.
Night sky bedazzled with the argent
moon,
romantics envision the moon maiden of
unsurpassed beauty,
emerging on the surface of the Earth,
amidst the blooming groves
and whispers of pleasant reverie,
to unite with her inamoratos,
establishing undying love and faith.
Lovers refer to the silver-clothed
lunar land
as a place where they can build a dream
home—
a mystical, magical, and delightful
bliss.
Scientists envisage the settlement of
humans on it someday,
experiments and speculations continue
to that effect.
A happy place for all, like a
harmonious symphony;
a susurrus, dulcet melody echoes
throughout,
serenading the moonlit nights,
enhancing enigmatic charm to the moon’s
allure.
After a thunderous rainstorm, a white
moonbow—
brimming with an electric aura—
hangs on the spray-painted dark sky.
*Quote by Neil Armstrong.