My weekend travels

by Joan Mazza

I’ve spent the last three days traveling on Saturn
and its many moons, most of it on Titan to skate
the lakes, enjoy its dense atmosphere. No smoke!
Apologies to friends who left voicemail

or who emailed links for articles to read. Far away,
I was safe from Covid19 and stubborn humans
who refuse to wear a mask or maintain distance.
No WiFi or cell service. Wind was the loudest
sound, a howling so different on each moon

For hours, I skated on gray icy rings, the music
of the spheres to keep me going. It’s good
to get away from people, without the need
for ID or a passport or special clothes for fancy

dinners with the captain. I’m a woman who likes
traveling alone, no one’s tastes or quirks to consider
or others’ moods to pacify. Last trip I had a full
week of, I don’t like how Io smells and Europa
is a swamp! You nap and eat too much!

I can’t please everyone in the solar system,
not even on this polluted, burning Earth. I sleep
much better away from the cat who wakes me
with his vomiting and pissing on the bath mats.

No nightmares about voting and mail delivery.
Their slogan: Life’s simpler on Saturn. Travel light;
leave all devices at home. Make sure you go before
it turns into another tourist trap of tacky stores
selling shoddy rings and trinkets made of stardust.