MANY MOONS AGO

"Ahhhhhh...!"
she ahhhhhs.

"Another one!"

The moon doesn't let on
it's the same old moon.

"Moon gone....moon gone!"
she had cried in alarm

on becoming a watcher
of the skies.

Once her mind had latched on
to her idea of "moon"

she was relcutant
to let it go.

I watched my young ancient
see her hold a moon

in the palm
of her mind

for the very first time

observe her
come to the conclusion

that the new moon is
indeed a new moon.

She imagines all the other moons
hiding in the night.

Or maybe that stars are moons
that are dwindling out of sight.

Maybe this moon is the daughter
of the one that's gone before?

Or could this be a "son moon."

I smile as I see her
put one and one together

come up with 10 and a half.

I let her follow through
her thought.

She populates the sky
with many moons

before reluctantly letting them
all go

settles for a singular moon
that forever changes

its faces.

I too unwilling to let go
her night of many moons.

Rather sad that my mythical girl
has to settle for the knowledge of

the ages.

I enjoyed her
making the world

in her own image
the Goddess inside her

fading...fading.

When she has entered
the time of being

16 and three quarters

moon has long been
a single creation.

I smile at who
she was

creating a cosmos
with what

thought was
available to her.

She many moons
removed from her

first astronomical  self.

I laugh as she whistles
in stops and starts

"No Moon at all"
( the Julie London version )

dealing as she does
with differential calculus.

"See...?" she says
"...m equals change in y over change in x."

I unable to follow
where she goes.

The moon and I both
letting on

she is the same
little girl.