A Poem for Europa by U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón

 A Poem for Europa by Ada Limón

As part of her tenure as U.S. poet laureate, Ada Limón has written “In Praise of Mystery,” which will be engraved on the Europa Clipper spacecraft that launches to Jupiter and its moons in October 2024. Published here as Limón’s debut picture book, this luminous poem is illustrated by celebrated and internationally renowned artist Peter Sís.

In Praise of Mystery celebrates humankind’s endless curiosity, asks us what it means to explore beyond our known world, and shows how the unknown can reflect us back to ourselves.

Ada Limón, 24th Poet Laureate of The United States

Ada Limón's signature project as the poet laureate is called "You Are Here".

In conjunction with the Library of Congress.

Here is her description of the project, from the LOC website:

“You Are Here” is my signature project as the 24th Poet Laureate of the United States. I believe the way we respond to this crucial moment on our planet could define humanity forever. In conceiving of the project, I wanted something that could both praise our sacred and natural wonders and also speak the complex truths of this urgent time. It’s my hope that “You Are Here” will do just that.

The project is comprised of two initiatives and a call-to-action. “You Are Here: Poetry in the Parks” features installations that aim to deepen our connection to nature through poetry, and the anthology “You Are Here: Poetry in the Natural World” speaks to the many different ways we are nature too. It may seem easier to surrender to the overwhelm of the world’s challenges right now, but I believe that singing out, offering something back to the earth, noticing our connection to the planet, could help us all move forward together in a powerful way.

This project is for everyone, and I hope people of all ages—poets and nonpoets—will feel moved to write their own response to the “You Are Here” prompt. It’s simple: What would you write in response to the landscape around you? You can share your response if you choose using the hashtag #youareherepoetry.

Above all, this project is about rising to this moment with hope, the kind of hope that will echo outwards for years to come.

Ada Limón
24th Poet Laureate of the United States

For more information about this project, please see Ada Limón's website (https://www.adalimon.net/) or the project's page on the LOC website. 

A Poem for Earth Day

Remember 

by Joy Harjo

Remember the sky that you were born under,

know each of the star’s stories.

Remember the moon, know who she is.

Remember the sun’s birth at dawn, that is the

strongest point of time. Remember sundown

and the giving away to night.

Remember your birth, how your mother struggled

to give you form and breath. You are evidence of

her life, and her mother’s, and hers.

Remember your father. He is your life, also.

Remember the earth whose skin you are:

red earth, black earth, yellow earth, white earth

brown earth, we are earth.

Remember the plants, trees, animal life who all have their

tribes, their families, their histories, too. Talk to them,

listen to them. They are alive poems.

Remember the wind. Remember her voice. She knows the

origin of this universe.

Remember you are all people and all people

are you.

Remember you are this universe and this

universe is you.

Remember all is in motion, is growing, is you.

Remember language comes from this.

Remember the dance language is, that life is.

Remember.

 

Joy Harjo was appointed the new United States poet laureate in 2019. Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1951, Harjo is a member of the Mvskoke/Creek Nation. She is the author of several books of poetry, including An American Sunrise, which is forthcoming from W. W. Norton in 2019, and Conflict Resolution for Holy Beings (W. W. Norton, 2015). She is a current Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets and lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma.