8X8


The skiff lingers
Making circles on the water
And the Portuguese lighthouse radiates

The boat retreats
As the 8x8 foreign man
Petting the 2 canines
Said to me:

Good morning!

A woman
Is confused
With the salt water
Her denim jeans
Have pockets full of sand
She’s on the shore
She’s at the mercy of the cold water

She’s wet
She screams
She curses
She cries
In English

I walk
I walk away
I walk northbound
To the line on the face
Of the earth

Tight lips
She tries to smile
But she can’t