The ship clock strikes twelve but it’s not too well
I’m almost warm with a tepid pillow to console
me as I lay here thinking of what I once held dear:
our vows and words before the jabs and wounds.
The night is solemn dark and in the silence beats
this star-stuck heart; I should feel good that’s fair
to say, though yet not cured from the flowing fair-
ness of your hair, your scent I used to know too well
before bereft of warmth you left this broken beat.
In knells of absence; not even silence can console
my weight of broken bones, my burning wounds
why did adventures cease so soon. Oh dear
do you still remember lustrous worlds, how dear
it was to touch my skin? to do it straight and fair
and how you had me tightly wrapped and wound;
when I lay tamed in lust and longing right before the well
was filled, before we rested sated, and consoled;
before we turned the ship to somber drum-beats
Through wars we slept — arm-wrapped on the heartbeat
lullabies; and you, you whispered to me: “you are dear
to me, my fearless lover” and you kissed, consoled
me into cotton candy dreams; our living soft and fair
in dappled sheen and I believed that all was well.
Before your tongue had sliced these open wounds.
Do you still recall how our star-ship went and wound
through parsecs, galaxies of light to gentle beats.
We sailed on light beams; existed all too well
among familiar stars where fears were few and dear
when somewhere on a comet’s tail there was a fair
for weary travelers like us to dance enjoy, consoled
from homesickness, reprogram our ship’s console
repairing star-sails, drink to forget our wounds.
After travelling together how was it even fair
when you decided it was time to split? “I’m beat”
you said, “From now let’s just be friends my dear”
You left me for that alien djinn but wished me well.
The air is bright and fair the lights, A clock beats
but, no message on my console blinks to heal the wounds;
without you dearest ghost, nothing’s ever really well.
This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image reveals the iridescent interior of one of the most active galaxies in our local neighbourhood — NGC 1569, a small galaxy located about eleven million light-years away in the constellation of Camelopardalis (The Giraffe). This galaxy is currently a hotbed of vigorous star formation. NGC 1569 is a starburst galaxy, meaning that — as the name suggests — it is bursting at the seams with stars, and is currently producing them at a rate far higher than that observed in most other galaxies. For almost 100 million years, NGC 1569 has pumped out stars over 100 times faster than the Milky Way! As a result, this glittering galaxy is home to super star clusters, three of which are visible in this image — one of the two bright clusters is actually the superposition of two massive clusters. Each containing more than a million stars, these brilliant blue clusters reside within a large cavity of gas carved out by multiple supernovae, the energetic remnants of massive stars. In 2008, Hubble observed the galaxy’s cluttered core and sparsely populated outer fringes. By pinpointing individual red giant stars, Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys enabled astronomers to calculate a new — and much more precise — estimate for NGC 1569’s distance. This revealed that the galaxy is actually one and a half times further away than previously thought, and a member of the IC 342 galaxy group. Astronomers suspect that the IC 342 cosmic congregation is responsible for the star-forming frenzy observed in NGC 1569. Gravitational interactions between this galactic group are believed to be compressing the gas within NGC 1569. As it is compressed, the gas collapses, heats up and forms new stars.
Today I link an old sestina to dVerse OLN that is substantially rewritten. A love-story among starships and galaxies is what it is. Also linking up to the sestina prompt
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September 5, 2019
Björn Rudbergs writings 
Ah the brave sestina emerges I like the Sci-Fi elements. Your narrative is strong enough to mask the form much of the time. I liked the line
/when somewhere on a comet’s tail there was a fair for weary travelers/.
I had to look up Dijinn, the Islamic form of genie.
There is a part of me in love of sci-fi poetry… I want to write more.
That’s an epic sestina, Björn! There is so much to love and it’s hard to pick out phrases and lines for praise. I do especially love the lines:
‘The night is solemn dark and in the silence beats
this star-stuck heart…’;
and
‘The air is bright and fair the lights, A clock beats
but, no message on my console blinks to heal the wounds;
without you dearest ghost, nothing’s ever really well.’
I love to bring sci-fi into poetry… sometimes I think story telling in poetry is something we need more of.
I agree!
Yes Bjorn, Such glorious moments of vivid eternity recalled from the exhaustion of love and passion truly and honestly spilt till sated… Great write…
The way you weave the threads together here, into a tapestry of light, shadow, and sorrow is magnificent. You make it look easy. The respite station and the ending are my favorite parts of your beautiful sestina.
Such a glorious Sestina, Bjorn! ❤️ I especially love; “The night is solemn dark and in the silence beats this star-stuck heart,” and the emotions of love, desire and betrayal in; “our living soft and fair in dappled sheen and I believed that all was well. Before your tongue had sliced these open wounds.” Inspired 🙂
It’s great to tell a story in a sestina… you should try… just a week left.
It’s lonely out in space On such a timeless flight…these words from Elton John’s Rocket Man comes to mind with this sestina. I like how you have brought about the merging of sci fi with poetry!
Sci fi is great with poetry…
Lost in Space has found a new author … romance in space … great story well woven!
Heart felt scifi. Heart felt love.
I like this description of words making wounds: “Before your tongue had sliced these open wounds.”
What a star ship story, what a journey from being together to being left alone. Love the sestina with some twist in the ending words like drumbeats/heartbeats, oh dear/how dear. The space travel to the galaxies and stars was enjoyable Bjorn.
Yes, this def has a sci-fi feel to it and I love how you captured all parts of the journey. I love story-telling in poetry. It gives the reader so much in so few words. Ugh..I can feel the anguish.
In knells of absence; not even silence can console
my weight of broken bones, my burning wounds
why did adventures cease so soon
I too am sharing one about the cosmic sky.
…nothing’s ever really well. That really sums up the ongoing pain of a broken relationship! Well done!
Masterful.
Wonderful Sestina, but even more, love those lines.
Love always takes us to other worlds…and the ending brings us back to earth. Wonderfully cosmic. (K)
I love this sci-fi heart of Björn! Very cool! And I loved the image… 🙂
I was surprised about where you took us in this space journey. After the first stanza and the lines:
I lay here thinking of what I once held dear:
our vows and words before the jabs and wounds.
I thought it was about a sailor who had lost his love. But I’m loving the reality of this.
This has nothing to do with poetry, Bear. It is an artificial feeling. And, before your cell phone looses power, you should think of the fact you used to write iambic pentametric poems. which aI really enjoyed. Maybe the future, to some, is not the way and surrendering of formal poetry. Even so, know aI once liked your style, and sought you.
I think that my view of what is poetry has embraced many forms. I know your views and I disagree with that.
I am perfectly capable of stitching together iambic pentemeter, but to me that is only a small part of what poetry is.
By the way the sestina is formal poetry in its purest sense dating back to the 12 the century…
Anders you need your broaden your views on poetry I think, that said I am not perfectly satisfied with this poem,…