EXPECTATION
Gretchen Fletcher

Someone's whole universe held
for a space of time in a tiny orb -

named for Aurora, goddess of dawn,
appearing as yellow, white, or rose

a small, golden time set apart
from the mundane chronology
governing the rest of the world,

labeled Au on that cold Table
atomic no. 79, atomic wt. 196.9665

a sparkling expectation, a promise
held so carefully under the heart
and at the same time in the heart.

found as ore deep in veins of the Earth
but in need of refining by extreme heat

Never again will the shiny promise
be so free of tarnish as it is now,

malleable, ductile, and soft, measured
in grains, pennyweights, and karats

poised just at the point of being
realized, and by its very release
made somehow less golden.

melting point 1064.41 C
boiling point 2807.8 C
magnetic moment 0.1439 N x m