Heart To Pilot by Brian K Compton

Heart To Pilot

I saw you in the heavens;
a shining jet,
so proud, serene
yet cynical,
mocking small shapes below.
With your avoidance,
you avert amorous traffic;
glide the sky by your radar.

Then I saw you
in a hangar, refueling,
as if waiting for me
reluctantly.
I made my approach,
a diversion from my flight plan.
I invoked your smile
and recall the impression --
radiance, air, but out of reach.

You rose; separated from gravity
and the earthly forces
that sought to shut your engines down --
fighter pilots gunning for your eyes
were so observant
when you were young.

Before departing, I saw you
and smiled again. Clouds
were in my eyes; birds
in my fuselage.
I wanted to fly higher, prouder.
My engines choked,
as you steered away.

Deflecting charm;
resistance, experience,
the thought of our sojourn
dreamily rose and fell.
I lacked the heart to pilot,
for fear I would provoke
another deathly disaster.

I saw you in a dream,
in a tail spin, smoke
from your belly -- fire
ruining good engines.
The parachute, the fall,
screaming metal bones crashing --
all the pieces on the ground
now cold.

Somehow, pieced back together;
you appear stronger, more resilient.
My masculine compulsion yearns
to soothe the ruffled armor --
the weather beaten wings.
But on closer inspection;
found you perfectly warm,
a motor timing in tune.

I saw you taxi
down the runway today;
a riveted frame, effortless,
steadily climb still air.
Not a sound --
a smooth sailing craft
in mid-flight rhapsody.

Dangling over the world,
aloof and alone,
you taunt all creation
to justifiably compare.
Smooth and shimmery-sleek,
caressed by wind
your propulsion makes
before lost in to the rain clouds.

For Ruth, who taught me the meaning of facetious...

7.13.24 edited, more mature, tighter, grammar and punctuation edits

Life has taught us that love does not consist of gazing at each other,
but in looking outward together in the same direction.
-- Antoine de Saint-Exupery