Escape Velocity

Whenever I post a poem, I always face the dilemma of whether to share its provenance or let readers draw their own conclusions. After some deliberation, I’ve chosen the latter for this one.

The idea came to me as I watched the sun rise over Crescent Park in St. Petersburg. I was still smiling, still hearing the voice of a middle-aged African-American woman singing gospel songs as she jogged around the lake. She was some distance away by then, but her voice carried across the water, and her joy was palpable.

I decided I needed the definition of escape velocity, so I turned to my trusty friend, Wikipedia. The first two verses are pretty much what it had to say.

Escape Velocity

when wishing to break free
of a planet or a moon
escape velocity is required
in order to escape
the gravitational influence

escape velocity
textbooks tell us
rises with a body’s mass
falling as that body
recedes into the distance

leaving old lives behind
embracing new opportunities
the same rule applies
escape velocity is required
a leap of faith is called for

© 2021 Robert Ford