A Walk on the Beach - a Poem
Walking on the beach in
Bucerias, I came upon a Theme hiding
behind a red snapper lying
in final pose under the brilliant sun.
I reached for the Theme
but it flitted away, darting from
grains of sand to smooth-polished
stones to half-buried driftwood to
tidal pools teeming
with primordial reminders.
When I tired of the chase and sat
in the hard sand,
casting my eyes down and low,
the Theme appeared
in my shadow in the sand,
shimmering in its own heat.
We went to a bar on the beach,
the Theme
riding on my shoulder,
curious about the height and
my intentions.
It silently ordered camerones y cervesas
but before the order came
it faded with
infinite slowness into the dying golden
wash of the sun on the rippling ocean
and disappeared, leaving
no
contact information.
© Robert Cook
