Poem: Ocean Breaks

Ocean Breaks


After draining the last of the burned coffee
I replace the lid and push
the cup into the sand,
pull my feet back to sit on my haunches
wrap my arms around my knees

as if I were five again, lost
among the ladies’ coats in Macy’s,
waiting to be found, not hiding
but immobile, silent on dusty tiles.

The fog begins to burn, the waves
become apparent. I shudder.
I can’t keep still. I listen
for the sirens. There will be 
an end to this.