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On Moonlight and Reality

John W. May

January 25 
Ballad
A Ballad of Light

The moon tonight has roused from slumber
   This my languid mind—
I paused, amazed, and wept with wonder
   How I so long was blind.

Her sphere of beauty hovered lovely,
   Silvering the night ...
Unrobed and real she posed above me
   In ontologic light.

With sudden clarity her Be-ing
   Overwhelmed my sight,
'Til I her Essence there was seeing
   That odd December night.

About this poem

Biking back home from work one December evening, the crescent moon, bright and forking obliquely left, rose and loomed above the rooftops looking unusually and unbelievably real. How poor the struggle to explain, but all false two-dimensional notions of it were instantly stripped away, and the presence of that crescent sphere (whose bold, ontological prospect hovered there before me in unfiltered and utterly raw reality) caused me to not only realize the strange fact of its actual existence, but also of the strange fact of my own.  

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Submitted by Vixility on January 27, 2025

26 sec read
105

Quick analysis:

Scheme A BCBC ADAD EDED
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 465
Words 86
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 1, 4, 4, 4
Full analysis for On Moonlight and Reality »

John W. May

John W. May has lived in Colorado all his life. He currently works in the field of ophthalmology and loves to mountain bike and read about history. John first became a lover of poetry in 2008 after having read a poem by John Milton. He has been reading and studying the works of various poets since. His favorite poets are Emily Dickinson, Fyodor Tyutchev and W. B. Yeats. more…

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Discuss the poem On Moonlight and Reality with the community...

9 Comments
  • 7lomy
    7lomy
    Well written, congratulations
    LikeReply 112 days ago
    • Vixility
      Vixility
      Your comment and kindness are deeply appreciated. Thank you for taking the time and leaving them.
      LikeReply10 days ago
  • bookerina
    bookerina
    Short, but packed with so much beautiful imagery. Another wonderful poem, John.
    LikeReply 112 days ago
    • Vixility
      Vixility
      Short poems are always a challenge for me. I labored intensely for the right words for this particular piece (it helped that I wrote it immediately after experiencing the event). Thank you for stopping by. 
      LikeReply10 days ago
  • jn.selvadurai
    jn.selvadurai
    I love this peace. Wonderful poetiic word selection. Congratulations John.
    LikeReply 112 days ago
  • Abernathyx
    Abernathyx
    Well done this is beautiful.
    LikeReply 112 days ago
    • Vixility
      Vixility
      Thank you for stopping by with such a nice comment.
      LikeReply10 days ago
  • npirandy
    npirandy
    Now THIS is my kind of poetry! Love it John! Well done.
    LikeReply 114 days ago
    • Vixility
      Vixility
      Randy! Thank you so much. I really, really wish that I could share the experience I had which inspired this very poor articulation of it.

      Hope all is well.
      LikeReply13 days ago
  • susan.brumel
    susan.brumel
    Beautiful piece, John. Congratulations!
    LikeReply 114 days ago
    • Vixility
      Vixility
      Your works were lovely as well, Sue. Of course, this is hardly surprising. I had a sneaky suspicion that “Winter’s Chill” was penned by you.
      LikeReply 113 days ago
    • susan.brumel
      susan.brumel
      Thank you, John. You are always there with a kind word for everyone. Yours, gorgeous writing as always. :-)
      LikeReply13 days ago
  • Wpowell2490
    Wpowell2490
    I am almost certain who wrote this, and I am a huge fan of how they successfully use vivid imagery within the confides of a difficult rhyming pattern. Another poem that I found myself reading several times, enjoying it more every time. 
    LikeReply 114 days ago
    • Vixility
      Vixility
      Talk about a compliment! Thanks for the vote and consequently the support. This poor poem was inspired by an almost mystical moment I had in December—it was an amazing and surreal moment that I will never be able to articulate.

      And hey, and that poem of yours, “The Raft”. Wow. A work of genius.       
      LikeReply13 days ago
  • KitKat8487
    KitKat8487
    It was read like a beautifully written melody playing in my head.
    LikeReply 114 days ago
    • Vixility
      Vixility
      Thank you, Katrina (can I call you Katrina?) for the vote! “The Way We Fall: Love Amid the Thistles”? I might have to add that to my collection.
      LikeReply 113 days ago
    • KitKat8487
      KitKat8487
      My pleasure and you absolutely may call me Katrina. :) Also, thank you for giving recognition one of my collections. If you happen to check it out, I hope you like it! ☺️
      LikeReply13 days ago
  • Symmetry60
    Symmetry60
    Well written poetry here. Enjoyed it from top to bottom. Hence, my vote goes to....
    LikeReply 114 days ago
    • Vixility
      Vixility
      Oh, wow, thank you for the vote!! I was utterly delighted to see that that poem “Growing Old” was yours. Man! You are producing some literary bombs! Can’t wait to see what you come up with next …
      LikeReply13 days ago

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"On Moonlight and Reality" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2025. Web. 23 Feb. 2025. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/212798/on-moonlight-and-reality>.

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