Beach Talk

Along the coast we walked 

And talk which ebbed and flowed 

Much like that foamy frontier 

Churned candidly under azure skies.

We are far now, far from,

The throngs of sun siphons 

Of infant architects commissioned 

To raise castles of uncanny semblance

(They all use the same bucket)

A stretch of beachrock, sunders 

The single bed. A harsh terrain

Malformed blades protruding from

A venerable, terrene face.

Or a garden bench,

Where weathered wood, paint peeling 

Exposes mastic wounds:

Blistering, bubbling, flaking.

It is here we stand, near minute 

Precipices. Only the hush of the ocean

calling a maternal concern for 

Our childish adventure...

Those crags look sharp, do be careful now? 

I turn to you, "What is it in life 

You most desire? Come on! There

must be something your heart yearns,

Or your stomach, some chemical 

In your brain?" 

I see you grin, some clairvoyant sign

You already knew what my question was

And you have ever lived by your answer. 

Stooping down, you pick apart the shingle

(With scientific precision).

"Give me the sun," you say.

"Give me the ocean breeze and 

Ethereal cadence of the sea,

For simplicity is beautiful to me." 

You give me a lozenge of quarts

At least I think it is quartz, and 

As I toss it in my hand, cool contours

Play softly on callous skin.

- The name no longer matters.

We turn our backs on our old selves

An old ocean, ancient stone

And as we plough through 

Sandy waves, we both reap 

The grainy field for stony tokens.

And as I return, pockets filled

I wonder, perhaps, if I am too rich.  

   

Reviews

[Botania]

James these words echo in quiet times! Suddenly, I realized they were for me as I have embraced them wholly. ... hands you one more stony token, a limpet, and a piece of me as in a smile that you can't see.

[R Smith]

wow! that brings back childhood days on beaches in parks, wildly reminiscent and yearning for it all to come back.

[James McFadyen]

So glad it could evoke such memories

[Lyn Anderson]

This is lovely, with a wonderful rhythm to it. I would take the d off cadenced however, but there is a reason you want it that way perhaps

[James McFadyen]

Yes you are right about the spelling, thank you for your keen eye!

[Frieda P]

Two souls surrendering under the same delectable sun...I particularly like the coolly nonchalant words expressed in your parenthesis, makes it down to earth and relatable. Excellent, I see the apple doesn't fall from the poetic tree!

[James McFadyen]

Thank you for such insightful words!

[Frieda P]

Was my pleasure James!

[John Alexander McFadyen]

Utterly unique, whimsical and with a taste of nostalgia and yet a hint of sadness in another work of Art James!