312.365 - sundown sunrise

no sunset ceremony tonight
the sun ekes down until its edge
touches the horizon
then passes behind it
without the usual garish displays
without the oranges and reds and golds
the teals the blasts of yellow-orange
the sun touches down
then slides slowly out of sight
some perhaps wonder if it's too tired
if it has lost its flair for drama
if from now on it will just sneak off stage
some of us "know" as well as humans can
the recent rains and winds have washed
dust and smoke particles from the sky
so for the moment it has nothing to work with
no way to scatter the sun's nearly horizontal light
in those brave flashy colors
it's hard to talk science to a people steeped in magic
and superstition
maybe especially so if one just barely remembers it
the sun disappears and night falls like a cape
or drape or curtain, science or no
we welcome it and shiver
darkness is when we let our monsters out
some of us, we too embarrassed to let them out in daylight
some of us do not let them out even at night
but huddle under the covers with them
some few remember when we were little
and our monsters hid in closets or under beds
hid deeper when our mother spoke or fathers
but now they've grown enough they need not hide
those of us with science scold ourselves
for letting monsters persist
even while knowing we no more can help it
than we can stuff Pandora's box full again
or hush that little voice called hope
we sleep to turn our backs on what we have let loose
and in the morning welcome the sun again