Shapes in the clouds are
More sophisticated than I
Recall from childhood. They
Have read, traveled, expanded
Their horizons. Aged.
One of them looks
Like a man in a winter hat,
Deep in thought, wishing
He could see things otherwise;
Yet he looks wise enough
To know without seeing
What shapes moonlight
Could reveal in these very
Clouds. As he thinks, he blows
Steam from the rim of a sky-
Blue cup. The impetus of breath
Scuds the vapor. It moves
From him as if across
A sky among clouds,
One of which looks
Like a man in a winter hat,
Wise and full of thought,
Blowing a sigh of steam
From his vast blue cup.
January 6, 2008
Devon Marsh 