This poem was first published in the poetry anthology the ocean waves edited by Red Penguin Press, July 2021.
Our feet sink heavily into wet sand,
stood at the shore, held still
and beholding the tremendous power
of all the world's water churning
right before our eyes.
This ocean is
the force behind
everything we know.
This ocean is
Love.
Beside you, I whisper
Where is it going?
and you swear
No where.
But slowly the secret life
of the ocean floor
reveals itself to us
as strong tides pull back its veil
and expose a treasure trove—
(A spray of shells and sea glass,
sea plants and little crabs…)
Stuck there in gold I remember
Marriage means falling in love many times,
always with the same person.
That’s the part we were told.
Never that we might sometimes
get washed out of love
before we can
get back in.
That we had to learn.
Better to stand and sink in-
to the strand when the ebb pulls back,
behold what’s there divulged,
collect driftwood to build our boat,
and pocket the pearls at our feet:
Loyalty, Trust, The Truth of Us:
a basin strong enough to hold
an ocean of love.
Love,
never far away,
always gets recalled.
Just like the tide now rolling in,
we’re swimming in it once again.
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