Belief in the Far Reaches
for Wanda
J. Marshall Jenkins
In midsummer 1969,
my parents let me stay up late to watch
the Apollo 11 moon landing
and that “one small step,” that “one giant leap.”
The subject came up soon enough weeks later
among us fifth graders embarking on
another eternal school year. Some declared
that they did not believe it really happened.
They thought it was staged in Arizona
or Nevada. To search out evidence,
we could not travel west, much less the moon.
I believed anyway – still do – and they,
I suppose, still do not. Why should they?
Belief says more about the believer
than about the facts. Yet, if I believe
nothing, no facts worth knowing remain.
I cannot prove yesterday’s history
or today’s news. I cannot prove that stars
are not children’s lost balloons bouncing up
against a dome, nor can I prove that my life moves
to some worthwhile end. I cannot prove
that I am loved, addressed, and called by One
beyond all I see and hear. I cannot
prove that you love me with anything near
the certainty that I know I love you,
but my belief in your love is solid,
clear, and fiery as the diamond
on your finger. I believe these things.
If I must be a fool, as all of us must,
I choose to believe in the far reaches.
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Searching for Something Eternal (poem)
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth (Matthew 5:5).
For the above image (public domain) and related moon mission images, click here.
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