I want to return to the sea:
sway in the currents
travel the tides
hide behind barnacled rocks
dine among the pliant blades
of seagrass.
No papers, no books, no bills
nothing to clean, nothing
to maintain.
Why did we ever leave the water?
What beguiled us so?
It must have been the sun
reaching down with golden stories
of more.
Now I am tired of pounding rain
and murdering droughts,
torn by the work, the wear, the wars.
I want one thing, nothing more:
to return to the simple solace
of the swaying sea.
is the author of the chapbook The Belly Remembers and two full-length volumes of poetry, Wild Domestic and Moraine, all published by Pearl Editions. Her most recent chapbook, On the Fault Line, was released in March by Picture Show Press. Her full-length poetry collection Morpheus Dips His Oar is forthcoming from Sheila-Na-Gig Editions. Her work has appeared in Chiron Review, The Worcester Review, A Year of Being Here, ONE ART, The Writer’s Almanac, and many other publications.
A swimmer, dog lover, and native of the southern California desert, Ms. Madison has recently retired from teaching English and French in a Los Angeles high school. Read more about her at:
https://tamaramadisonpoetry.com
