far from the fringe of the sea,
we who live upon small islands.
We like to rise up early,
quick in the agile mornings
and walk out only little distances
to look down at the water,
to know it is swaying near to us
with songs, and tides, and endless boatways,
and undulate patterns and moods.
We want to be able to saunter beside it
slowpaced in burning sunlight,
bare-armed, barefoot, bareheaded,
and to stoop down by the shallows
sifting the random water
between assaying fingers
like farmers do with soil,
and to think of turquoise mackerel
turning with consummate grace,
sleek and decorous
and elegant in high blue chambers.
We want to be able to walk out into it,
to work in it,
dive and swim and play in it,
to row and sail
and pilot over its sandless highways,
and to hear
its call and murmurs wherever we may be.
All who have lived upon small islands
want to sleep and awaken
close to the fringe of the sea.
By A.L. Hendriks
From Under the Moon and Over the Sea - A Collection of Caribbean Poems
Painting: Emerald Seas - Prints and Gallery Canvas Wraps handmade to order
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