Darwin’s Loss

Who and what we are is driven by many factors. The poem “Darwin’s Loss” looks past the horrors of war in the tragic loss of life, to the loss of the continuation of the DNA of the casualties of war. Throughout history and now in the modern world, fatalities of war have eliminated millions from the gene pool and have affected the trajectory of evolution and demographics. Often casualties of war are youths, many of whom have not had offspring. In the aggregate, loss of their DNA in the gene pool due to war affects demographics and evolutionary direction.

Seeing war made me think
Of a strange effect
Not much discussed, not said
At least never that I’ve read

By that I mean
What massive effect
Of continual wars on the earth
Has directed the course of humans that exist

Wars fought by the young
Not the old
In direct battles and death
All may die, but the old may go on, in a deo nucleic sense

Mass casualties of war
Through time, now and past
A massive collection
Of young lives gone, their essence vanished
No children born, genes and generations lost

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The Illusion of Time

The poem “The Illusion of Time” reflects on the routinely perceived versus the extremely complex notion of time. The poem delves into time as the crucial element of life and the nature of the existence of time past. The question of the true nature of the fourth dimension is highlighted by the poem. The existence of time past is also explored in poetic verse. Time is our constant companion, but an esoteric phenomenon not easily explained or even understood.

The progression of time
Never understood
It goes on, and on
But the future and past
That’s hardest to grasp

In time there’s only this moment
From this time on, have only the present
Moments ago now in the past
No return even to an instant
That just occurred, gone, long lost

What measures time
Not just clocks I mean
What is the nature of time
That all exists in
The very essence of life, of everything

It’s said time flies
But what does that mean
Or that times stood still
Just perceptions, impressions of the mind
Expressions of fear or regret

I feel a sense of urgency, sometimes
When I think of time ticking away
For good things to happen my way
Or wanting time to fly
If dreading, wanting bad to go away

Some refer to time past
But time itself
Extinguishes the past
Only what is remembered
Is known to have existed

Remnants may remain
Evidencing the past
Stories recorded, a history of events
Riddle this, prehistoric with no fragments left
What is the proof time existed in that past

Not knowing the future
Is one thing
But consider what is future time
Beyond comprehension, infinite
Can’t be analyzed or perceived

Perhaps best that can be done
Is to know history undistorted
To know how each moment in time
Best be seized, for the good, for desires
Living in every present instant, before time disappears

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New Frontiers

The poem “New Frontiers” describes and ponders the issue of devoting resources to space exploration rather than earthly needs such as attempting to reduce poverty. The poem suggests that the innate human desire for discover and adventure that has propelled exploration and development will continue to drive space exploration as the new horizon for discovery.

How difficult it is
How difficult it will be
To send and return
Or only to send
Humans and all essentials to exist
In new worlds not earth

Moons, Mars, planets, throughout the cosmos
Will those be new homes
For humanity a step
Into the unknown
Certainly it would be
One giant leap for mankind

It’s the vision of some
Great minds and thinkers
Geniuses and explorers
Will there be the sums
Of money to fuel rockets and crafts
After earthly needs are met

One thought is why spend what’s needed to fly
When some humans on earth
Still in want, may starve and die
What is the greater quest
Seems easy to conclude
But the answer is complex

Where does destiny lie?
Competition of nations
May answer that question
What wealth it takes
To explore all space
Powers and powerful will commit

So that rival nations and men
Are not left behind
In the space and rocket games
The wealth of nations a key
To unlock space travel
And create the machines

The answer to the future missions of men
May lie in the past
In the history of humans to always explorer
Often seeking fortune, some seeking fame
Others for adventure, all just the same
Venturing into the unknown

Years and centuries may pass
But the spirit of man is the same
To seek purpose, desires for acclaim
To explore new frontiers
The courageous will brave the risks
That they may achieve their dreams

Standing on shoulders of giants, to reach the stars
Discoverers from the past, not only those in ships or flights
Remember the Newtons and Galileos over long expanse of time
Discovering nature’s laws and how to calculate
Every detail, small and galactic
Crucial to reach the stars

A marvel of machines made to come this far
Complex creations requiring the highest intellect
And immense human effort and sacrifice
Multitudes striving together for a common cause
Pushing boundaries of knowledge
To explore the cosmos

Yet to balance exploration with earthly human needs
Needs more discoveries for future days
To go into the cosmos in more brilliant ways
Consuming less of what’s needed by humanity on Earth
Discoveries by people of genius, now and yet born
Will reveal new secrets and unlock deep mysteries

Less waste, less strife
Less loss from war and loss of life
Is it a bridge too far
To help fellow man
While seeking to explore
The mysteries of space that await

The potential is to unite
The risk is to divide
The people on earth
Bringing people together
To find new truths in the infinite
To give new purpose for an uncommon endeavor

Behold rocket flames a beacon of light to inspire
To give hope in seeing
What humans can achieve
To reach the stars
To prove it is possible
To do the improbable

Future of humanity lies in the cosmos to explore
In the new frontiers
Fascination of the greatest accomplishment
Known in the history of time
The brave who fly reveal the glory of pioneers
The journey beyond to embrace new frontiers

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Poetry, Science