The doctors said
You only had
Two years to live,
Yet you went on and
Revolutionized theoretical physics
For the next fifty.
They said that
You would
Never speak again,
Yet you got a computer installed
That spoke for you.
They said that
You would
Never walk again.
You never needed to walk,
You flew at 0G.
Your mind never was
Confined to the
Earth that you stood on.
Your mind frolicked in distant galaxies,
It panced around black holes.
It made itself home
On many exoplanets.
It loved to bask
In the brightness
Ofa thousand supernovae.
Your affair with the universe
Was so.... captivating.
You were an amazing soul
That transcended your
Body's physical limitations,
And whose mind extended
Deep into the vastness of the universe,
And came back to us with
Knowledge that far exceeded
Our understanding.
No space shuttle
Has ever traveled
Farther than
Your mind has
The Pioneer 10
Is still playing
Catchup with you,
Stephen.
I know that this will be
The love letter that you won't receive,
But I just wanted to let you know
Just how much you meant to me.
To all of us.
Now your atoms
Are finally freed
From their biological prison,
And are free to be
One with your love again.
And as much as I sit here
And lament about the fact
That i will never meet you,
Your works will far exceed
The lifespan that was
Burnt out too soon.
P.S. I finally figured out
The final missing component
To The Theory of Everything:
It was you.
You were the ultimate triumph of science,
The physical manifestation
Of the mysterious cosmos,
And it is a privilege to
Have existed in the same generation
As a man who was born 300 years
After the death of Galileo,
And who passed on the birthday
Of Albert Einstein,
On a day that represents a number
that stretches out infinitely.
With your theory finally complete,
You may now rest in peace.
See you on the other side of the universe,
Alex Penuelas
