The Prime Directive by Darrell Petska and Brent Skinner

 

"The Path" © Brent Skinner

The Prime Directive

If I were tailor to Starship Earth,

I’d jettison adulthood’s tin armors

for a one-size-fits-all garment

woven of childhood’s lost chrysalis

nourished early on joy and the wonders

of our miraculous universe—

rainbow-hued would be such attire,

retaining the warmth of parental love,

the exquisite suppleness of childhood hope,

and the durability of family faith

in the essential goodness of humanity—

fabric meshing with a function to yield

material light as a dream. Protective,

comforting, eminently versatile

in the face of life’s hard weather,

no finer cloth could I provide

precious Starship Earth as boldly it goes

to discover new realms of peace and love.

© Darrell Petska

Darrell Petska

Brent Skinner

Darrell Petska, a retired university engineering editor and Wisconsin poet, collaborates with Brent Skinner, a Minnesota artist who also has an estate planning and probate law practice in Wisconsin. Skinner's passion is creating works of art. A serendipitous encounter reunited poet and artist after their lives diverged more than 50 years ago. See The Ekphrastic Review, Lothlorien Poetry Journal, and Collaborature for other examples of their work.

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