Man Versus Himself.

Man is not the most beautiful thing created by god.
Certainly he is the most venal, but also the most able
to construct physical grandeur with just his mind.

Starfish are not the most beautiful of god's creations,
in their glass-like stillness, their strength like bullets.  
Or the way they move like a game of jacks on the ocean floor.

Starfish are not the most beautiful of all creations,
but the stars very well might be.  Swollen diamonds,
tornadoes and the rings around the planets very well might be.  
My heart tangled with the taste
of a radioactive waste pile might be.

Man is not the most beautiful thing in all creation
because he claims the beauty of his blood
surpasses every single second, each dollar bill and dime,
every billion, book, and blackhole
hanging patiently in the web of time.