THE ASTRONAUTS BURIAL

Why call them back from the heavens?
They have grasped at distant stars.
Failed- yet not failed- and died there
In the silence, in black velvet air.

Why call them back from the heavens?
These warriors have seen new worlds!
A myriad of voices called them afar,
Urging them on to the beckoning stars.

Why call them back from the heavens?
They are buried in the spaces
That saw the birth of unknown races,
They could never bear the calm of the ever-pressing earth.

© 1973  Eschate