Telescopes train glassy eyes on our flaming star.
Satellites circle sideways in the plane
where planets travel.
And now a new craft will ring the sun
top to bottom to get a better view.
It’s a matter of trajectory.
Sometimes you have to change your path,
take off on a tangent, to find
what you’re looking for.
How would I ever know you if I hadn’t
turned left instead of right, hadn’t
taken the long view of your uncommon fire?
Drawn into your orbit, I circle in wonder
at the ordained distance, seeking
to glimpse your secret.
Meanwhile above, the solar orbiter gives us
a rare new look at the sun’s crown –
the burning truth, a near infinity
of heat and light.
Sally Zakariya’s poetry appears in 75 print and online journals and been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net. Her recent publication is Muslim Wife (Blue Lyra Press, 2019). She is the author of five other chapbooks, and editor of poetry anthology, Joys of the Table. www.butdoesitrhyme.com.
