occultation

by Isabel del Rio

in 357 B.C.

Aristotle recorded the Moon covering

Mars,

a mere satellite

concealing the belligerent

planet,

showing off that it

can do so and get away with it:

“Why,

I can stand in the way and leave Mars

out of the picture!”

Satellite

where any mark blistering it

survives

forever

or at least for ten million years because there is no wind

and no motion, a cratered

landscape

almost perfectly preserved, as it was

when created 4.5 billion years ago, no

atmosphere,

no air, on this side crevices of

hardened magma, whereas the far side is a smoother, gentler

body,

unmoved by all the fuss we make about it, it hides half of itself

from view, as if inadmissible

evidence,

so conveniently close that we can explore it

and find it is nothing but a

relic,

but sufficiently far away that we can call it what we want

and it will remain, for our sake and in our defense, in total

silence

* * * * *

"occultation" is from Isabel del Rio's poetry collection The Moon at the End of my Street (published by Friends of Alice Publishing, 2016)

Isabel del Rio is a bilingual poet and writer living in London.  She has published fiction and poetry in both English and Spanish, and has worked extensively as a linguist and journalist.  Her writing has also appeared in anthologies and online magazines.  Her most recent published work of fiction is Zero Negative, a collection of short stories on the subject of bloodshed, and her latest poetry book is The moon at the end of my street.  Her forthcoming works are two collections of short stories and a novel.  She regularly takes part in readings and performance poetry events. Website:  www.isabeldelrio.com