noctiphobia

Fear of the Night
after Leopardi

Alcetus: I’m telling you, Melissus,
Looking at the moon just now
Reminds me of a dream I had last night.
I stood at the window, looking at the sky,
And suddenly the moon began to fall.
It came straight at me, getting nearer
And nearer until it crashed
Like a bowl beside the house.
Then it burst into flame, then fizzled
Like a hot coal dropped in water.
It turned black, and the grass was singed.
And that was the way the moon went out.
But there was more to it than that.
When I looked up, I saw an opening in the dark.
It was the hole from which the moon
Had rolled down out of the sky.
I’m telling you, Melissus,
I was scared and still am.

Melissus: And why shouldn’t you be?
After all, the moon could fall at any time.

Alcetus: That’s right, look at the stars,
They fall all summer long.

Melissus: But there are lots of stars,
And if a few of them fall, so what?
There are thousands left.
But there is only one moon in the sky
And no one has seen it fall but in dreams.




From The Continuous Life by Mark Strand