Sun on the Horizon
By John Herlihy

I
I saw the sun today sitting with an air of majesty on the horizon,
Its heat and light bathing the earth with the devotion of a loved one,
As if I were seeing this miracle illuminate the world for the first time.
In fact I have seen it shine ten thousand times from infancy to my prime,
A circular flame sending forth undulating waves the color of rust,
Burning heavy auburn cinders on earth’s lip in a haze of mist and dust.
Time’s eye staring at me without blinking from the near distance;
I stared back in wonder with a sense of my own persistence.
The darkness of night has dissipated that once covered the land;
But continues to lurk in the shadows like a thief in a roving band.

II
The sun lifts its single eye across the land as it bids the night adieu;
It rises with the force of a prophecy that every morning comes true .
Mysteries roam through the darkness as the world silently weeps,
When the sun rises, the earth awakens from the clutches of deep sleep.
Every day, it appears from nowhere to dispel the night’s malevolence,
An ancient star attached only to earth to cast forth its divine benevolence.
The glorious morning, nature’s plaything, casting rays of light most sublime,
That dawns, then shimmers and shines across the field of earth’s time.
With head bowed, I turned away to begin once again another day;
I breathed a sigh of relief as the sun’s rays shone forth to show me the way.