Erosion

A poem by George Wallace

we were walking together
in the neverending parentheses of the world
on a beach of many boulders,
a tumbling line of surf to our right,
to our left a towering cliff face, precipitous!
don't use exclamation points, you said
and sea terns flying beyond sight
into a horizon built into the blind wind
by time and distance and sand.
above us i could see the long edge of the cliff,
beyond that, nothing but blue heaven.
look! you said, one of the pine trees has been uprooted.
you were right - it was about to tumble right out of this world
and into the thin air which originally bore it.
i tossed a few pebbles at the sea.
you used an exclamation point! i said.
so i did, you said, so i did.
hold me! you said,
the flecks of salt spray
rusting your hair to white.
so i did.

Copyright 2006 by George Wallace