All the Important Things
Curracloe Beach, July 2016
Only last week we walked here, raincoatsÂ
throat-zipped, scarfs doubled,
a curious seal our sole company.Â
The sand, a shade between cementÂ
and cardboard, released fine powder,Â
whipped ankle skin.
Two horses thundered past;
You swam here? he said, and made meÂ
wonder if time had distorted it all,Â
if the flipbooks were real—
Did I really, age nine and nut-brown,Â
fossick for pretty shells,Â
eat hard-boiled eggsÂ
and scallions, drink Tupperware-tea
after my third dip of the day?
           Â
Today, he has left for Moscow,Â
but I have my answer: the sky—
kite-ribboned, Falcon-brochure blue.
Hoards throng in every shadeÂ
of sunburn, white and bottle-tan.
Mothers—ankle deep—hike skirts,Â
mark toddlers. Candy-stripedÂ
windbreakers stake out territoryÂ
keeping sand off lubed backsÂ
and lacquered boobs.Â
Installed on deckchairs, leeward,Â
women cluck and sizzle,
Sure this is better than Spain,Â
talk of the best swimsuitÂ
for an even tan, the antics of kids,
husbands, the important things.
My youngest, lithe in triangleÂ
bikini, trawls the littoral zoneÂ
for tiny clams in mauvesÂ
and peachy pinks, eachÂ
with a pinhole
at the apex, perfect for a necklace.
The road tar has melted on the wayÂ
back to cars parked in ditches.Â
Outside the games arcade,Â
teens eye each other offÂ
as practice material; it could beÂ
Curracloe Beach 1986,
the year we dredged the seaÂ
for our parish priest. Or, for that matter,
Rush Beach 1976, carsÂ
in a prairie-wagon ring,Â
jelly-fish brandished at terry-
towelled girls and a sun-worshipper,Â
caught off guard in a cross-
your-heart bra.
The seal has fled to warmer waters,
like my love, who believes all this
was invented by a woman far from home.


Audrey, Really enjoyed your poems. Beautiful touch. Sue
Thanks Sue! So glad you enjoyed them!
Beautiful, love the words … Tubberware tea, kite ribboned; I’m oblivious to the dangers of a man, or a train. Powerful. This, the first glimmer of a deeper kind of love, what a beautiful line. thank you!
Thanks Fran! Glad you liked them!
These are gorgeously mysterious! Thank you for writing.