In that one orbit of the Earth,

He must have understood far more

That any human mind alive.

Think about it. Not just the view,

But actually being there:

Above the trifles, the low plod

Of puffed-up order, the slow deaths

In crowds pressed against shop windows.

Above the bile, the pious chat,

The mush of mediocrity.

Above the relevance of air.

 

Seeing all that really matters.

 

Like Armstrong later, the sense of

The ordinary, yet unique.

(In the end, he was just a man.)

Of lone conquering, with special

Insight that no one else can claim.

Privilege? Yes, but with a risk

That few, if none, of us would take.

 

He earned his moment – looking back

At us down here, and wondering.