when the fog lifted
I found myself
on a rocky beach
shipwrecked
I realized
there was that vast ocean
then the moon and the stars
seemingly too far off to reach
out on the roiling reef
I could see shark fins
knives and razor teeth
a swirl of ripe mangoes and peaches
awash in the moiling surf
beseeching the tenants
coconut and oil palms
reaching island sentinels
standing rough in ragged rows
awaiting the next big blow
the churning cyclone
the next saline apocalypse
every hurricane revelation
reveling in prayers and pearls
the salty sea reveals
all that salt running in our veins
rivers from elemental heaven
awake in a quadratic equation
residing beside me
while equatorial waves
roll in from the tropical east
Magellan himself
would have felt lost
watching all the flying fish
circumnavigating
pearl gated heaven and that mythic coral reef
where greater prayers are surely lost
what horse latitude relief
where surly hopes are drowned
where destiny comes at a frenzied cost
that far-off coastal place
just off that rocky beach
where shining pearls are sometimes found

 

 

 

  

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