SEEKER

for Ray Bradbury

   A teenager, I doted on S-F,
   Which meant both Speculative Fantasy
   And Science Fiction, two fun ways to ef-
   What seemed ineffable, a mystery:

   What is it that lies out beyond our ken
   Toward the stars, or here in inner space?
   It’s in our deepest consciousness, the yen
   To meet this dim Enigma face to face:

   The Source of everything, the Meaning of
   The universe of our experience—
   Why is there consciousness, why hate, why love,
   And why are we so brilliant and so dense?

        Now, as an elder, has this all come clear?
        I’m seeking still for Meaning to appear.

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