THE STARS

Oh, stars that reflect in the deep velvet night, Secrets of ages, in rotation they spin, The flame of a distant and ineffable light, Like whispers of dreams that should never begin.

Each glimmer a promise from worlds unseen, Guiding the lost through the wild ways of fate, In the hush of their glow, I am silent, I glean, Lessons of time that the heavens create.

Though clouds may obscure what is truly divine, And shadows engulf the warm flickers’ graces, The stars still dare to shine, brightly enshrined, In the heart of the cosmos, in infinite spaces.

• Hope Mirrlees