Selected Poems

Moon on the Wing | Evening | 1947 | Quo Vadis, Debbie?

Moon on the Wing

Somewhere east of St. John's
the moon came up level with the plane's wing,
got tangled in the green starboard light,
and rode with us a while.
Then, shaking itself free
and rising higher than we could fly,
headed west into the dark we had left behind.
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First published in Flying Machines (December 2000)--First place award, Icarus International Year 2000 Poetry Competition, and in Apocalypse Clam (2006).

--Icarus Prize Editor Ted Kooser praises "Moon on the Wing":
"I chose "Moon on the Wing" for its clarity, its precision, and its charm. Of all the poems, this one, for me, best captured the pure magic of flight. It is not burdened with weighty conclusion and can lift from the runway. It does not want to make a point, pose an argument, shape an opinion. Often a clear and lovely image is enough for the reader: a gift, not a lesson."