Conventions of Light
by Bruce Boston
Last Convention of Starlight:
It travels inconceivable distances
to cast shadows so faint
only children can feel them,
so delicate they can be
swallowed in a breath.
First Convention Of Moonlight:
It has gradually gathered
such a weight of metaphor
it no longer remembers
it is only a reflection.
Human Conventions of Earthlight:
We bask in the warmth
of its sheltered radiation.
Our vision swims in the sea
of its chromatic radiance.
Whether clothed or naked,
we wear its changing colors
all the days of our lives.
Copyright © 2000, Bruce Boston
IC349
Reflection Nebula in the Pleiades
Bruce Boston is the author of forty books and chapbooks, including the novel Stained Glass Rain and the best-of fiction collection, Masque of Dreams. His stories and poems have appeared in hundreds of publications, including Asimov's Science Fiction, Realms of Fantasy, Weird Tales, Strange Horizons, Pedestal, Year's Best Fantasy and Horror, and the Nebula Awards Showcase. His fiction has received a Pushcart Prize and the Best of Soft SF Award. His poetry has won a record seven Rhysling Awards, a record four Asimov's Readers' Awards, and the Grand Master Award of the Science Fiction Poetry Association. He lives in Ocala, Florida, City of Trees, with his wife, writer-artist, Marge Simon.