Cassini you cosmic firefly
you vacuum-empty space bowl
manufactured metal comet
Saturn’s brief demystifying moon:
I suppose even robots
have a time to die but if
you’ve got to go (and you do
I’m sorry, you do) at least
you’re going beautifully:
jet-propulsion burnout
gravity slung arc into oblivion
probably (I’m sorry) we won’t
come to collect your body
probably there won’t be a body
left to collect you
returned to stardust vaporized
before the atmosphere gives out but
that’s alright isn’t it?
after all we’ve catalogued
your memories: geyser moons
hula-hooping sixth planet
from the sun and somewhere
even us on the black non-horizon
of void: a speck of light
a blue-pinprick yesterday
calling your name