Alexandra Churikova, ’12
A Poetic Scientist
A tribute to physicist James C. Maxwell
When I first heard about the scientists at CERN,
I thought about whether it was right
To challenge Einstein’s theory of light;
Or even dare to suggest it to be wrong.
Before I jumped to relativity’s defense,
I remembered my good friend James Clerk
Who, before Michelson-Morley’s greatest work,
Thought that ether clearly made sense.
Astounded to find Maxwell with a flaw,
I flipped through his equations, and smiled at every line;
Among the crazy symbols was something quite divine!
The symmetry of beauty inspired me to draw.
And so I took my canvas, my courage and my mind
To see what other beauty in nature I could find.
Puzzle Sonnet
If I were frail and weak, I would not cry,
For fear of distressing peace,
I would not dare blink a single eye,
Or, God forbid, reveal a crack or crease.
When you embrace your own great words that call
For handling others like you would yourselves,
Perhaps Tranquility of life will finally befall
All those like me who stand on lonely and forgotten shelves.
Do not reduce me to the one that pleads
For some compassion in your softer hands!
I would not be of use to any of your needs,
Or any kind of member of your plans.
Although I’m part of childhood’s lively phase,
Time averts you from my lifelessness of gaze.
* * *
Sonnet No. 1
In every lie there is a hidden truth
That tells its owner something very new;
When he himself no longer knows his ruth
There’s nothing real left for him to rue.
To others, though, it isn’t a surprise…
The truth, of which they know, brings light—
The kind that leaves his very eyes.
When doing so, another spark is bright.
This spark, sub rosa, might be covert shame
Discovered by the liar with a glance
At what resulted from his former aim.
If only he had known this in advance;
He would have saved himself from others’ scorn,
A cleared conscience would see justice be reborn.
