Astropoetica: The Final Fling, by John Charles Mannone

Remember the frivolity of your youth
and the underworld of your birth?
Remember how radiantly you once had flung your garment,
stirring all the dust around?
When in his captive gaze,
your icy look melted,
your hair streamed
in the cosmic wind.
And in each other’s grasp
for one more fling
before her lonely outreaches.
Perhaps one day she will return
if not lost among the gravestones
in that cloud.
Perhaps she’ll be imprisoned
like her sisters
Charon
Sedna
aging in the frozen cold,
alone
so alone
but for his dim twinkle,
a reminder of her youthful past.

Eulogy for a Comet

John C. Mannone discovered poetry in Charlotte, NC in May 2004. His poetry blends lyrical tones rich in imagery. As a physicist, his passion to understand the universe is only surpassed by one to know its creator. He has formed PoeticWord Ministries to share this passion.

He is a professor of physics at Hiwassee College (Madisonville, TN) and consults in the nuclear industry. He holds advanced degrees in Electrical Engineering (Ph.D. candidate), Plasma Physics (M.S.), and Physical Chemistry (M.S.) and is actively engaged in amateur radio astronomy research. He is frequently sought as a speaker in astronomy outreach events. John is an instrument rated pilot and resides in north McMinn County with his beautiful wife Lyda.

His poetry appears in Iodine Poetry Journal, Thrift Poetic Arts Journal, Poetic Praise (2005 Anthology of Rhyme N Chatt), Frontage Road, The Reflector, the Swiss American Historical Society Review Journal, the International Dark-Sky Association Newsletter, and the Cleveland Banner. His poetry has been accepted to appear in the prestigious Astronomy Calendar, by Guy Ottewell (Universal Studios) in 2007.

His “Adventures in Astronomy” website can be found at http://home.earthlink.net/~jcmannone/.