SENSE OF REALTY

We think one day we’ll find another Earth

encircling some other distant sun.

It won’t be like the planet of our birth.

not one can stand up to comparison.

If lucky, we’ll find one that’s the right mass —

not to crush us with its gravitation —

with atmosphere made of breathable gas

(in our case, that means lots of oxygen).

It should spin a twenty-four hour day.

Its orbit had better be stable, too,

with axis tilted not too far away —

for gentle seasons like we are used to.

The climate should be warm enough to melt

the ice into water to quench our thirst —

no warmer than our home’s tropical belt —

so other life will likely be there first.

We’d like it landscaped with vegetation,

but first we must send in robotic probes;

before we establish a garrison,

we’ll have to contend with native microbes.

It also must have a magnetic field

to deflect its stellar radiation

and outer giants to make comets yield

an orbital path free from devastation.

And if its sun is anything like ours,

it should have an ozone layer intact,

or UV rays will burn our skin to scars

and cause our corneas to cataract.

… far easier to solve our problems here

than find fresh starts beyond our earthly sphere.