Seagrass

[couchgrouch]

SeagrassSam took a seat by the windowhad lobster and two or three beerstipped the waitress with a C-note,stuffed a pint in his peacoatand untied his tub from the pierhe waved to a lighthouse shadowlit his pipe as he cast offSame loved the endless motion,and the salt from the oceansoothed his nerves and calmed his coughdolphins leapt and dived as he sailed pastin the lonely trawler called the Seagrassshark jaws hung in his cabingulls slammed the side in the fogand the pint in his pocket,a picture in a locketwas the only captain's logsunset on the misty waterpainted waves a meadow greenthe moon rose pale and ghostly,Sam looked at that locket closelyand drifted off in a dreamthe water is wide and mem'ries are vasthe sailed them both in the old Seagrasshe cried tears of whiskey and brinewiped them with hands weathered from agehe once thought they had nothing but timewhen time is nothing but a mortal's gaugethe bay was crazy with signalsfrom Sam's friend in the old lighthousecos the currents were shifting,and Sam seemed to be driftingtoward Seal Rock to the souththough some things sank to the bottomfinding peace there forevermoreyesterday lingers and lingers,two things fell from Sam's fingersand caught a friendly tide to shoresome hearts are littered with driftwood of the pastlike a bottle and locket from the poor Seagrass(c)2005 Robert George