The Earth and Her Moon Photographed From the Oval Orbit of Mercury

They spin, the greater and the lesser one —

Sweep through the black. Green and blue disappear,

Reflecting only whiteness from the sun.

They both seem honest, know no sin or fear.

The larger orb looks clean, a benison

Of virtue. Their dual blamelessness abounds.

The smaller one floats as a denizen

Of purity. Deep anthracite expounds

Them both. They swoop together in an arc

Coronation of the Virgin by Agnolo Gaddi

As curving as the halo round the hair

Of Mary, twinned gifts glowing in the dark,

No, not the color of the golden glare

Bestowed on Him. Presents to us,

These pearls perform a distant angelus.