My First Telescope

I used a little eyepiece
And a pair of my father’s optical glasses,

A cereal box, a drainpipe,
Cedar roofing shingles, a record,
And a huge cardboard tube.

You could see a lot from a backyard
In Ohio, but I was living
In a mid-floor apartment
In Brooklyn. I made basic drawings

Of sunspots. I managed to observe
A few double stars
And the Great Nebula of Orion.
Stargazers, like musicians,
Typically learn
On inferior instruments.

Small wonder, then,
That it is the telescope
That has seen more changes
Than anything else
In my life.

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