OUR MISSION

for Tom Lombardo and Nicholas Maxwell
 wisdomeers

                   How did it come to be life happened here—
                   That this great globe in space could generate
                   From primal elements an atmosphere
                   That breathed into an inorganic state
                   What animated it and bid it breed
                   So over eons it grew more complex
                   As if by plan, eventually to succeed
                   In making something with immense prospects:
                   That would be us.  Now, what are we to do?
                   Grow wise and exercise that sapience
                   For which we’ve doubly named ourselves, but who
                   Alas, for all our progress, remain dense.
                        Still, wisdom is implicit in our race,
                        And it’s our mission to express that grace.

*