New York City Lit by the Moon and the Stars
by Karen McCarthy

'Twas a day of surprises
and a night of magic
when the lights went out on the city


The whole town paused to take a breath
Of sweet summertime
Which had been forgotten
In the hurly-burly
Never-ending, work-a-day life
That was New York


Childhood vacation memories
Were suddenly recalled
As folks traveled homeward
Without benefit of their 
Electrical umbilical cord


Daylight lingered 
And as the sun sunk into the west
Out came candles
And stories
And dusty musical insturments


Deck of cards which had been stashed away
Came out
And old games were played


People gathered on porches
The stars and the 
Slightly-waning full moon rose
And lit the darkened city
In a new way


We gazed in wonder


Who had really looked at the night sky 
Recently without electrical lights 
Dimming the vision?
 
Evening stretched into a 
Moonlit, starry night


There was skinny dipping
In the pool under the night sky
And then you appeared like magic
On a magic-filled night


We lingered long
Laughing in the moonlight


Talking with our lips, our 
Bodies, our eyes
Renewing a friendship
Ages deep


Kindling a flame 
Over candle light 
In the city lit by 
The moon and the stars


And passion ran deep
As night slowly waned 
And dawn approached


The lights were back
When I left you


Morning came early
With streetlights
And honking horns


But the magic remained 

©