Flotsam and jetsam

by Lee Nash

We argue again,

the difference between

 

flotsam and jetsam –

a nice distinction,

 

emotional cargo or

shell-blasted ballast.

 

Waves of loathing

whip up a sea shanty;

 

dry-retching stings my throat –

I can’t sing your hook.

 

A scream in the bathroom

is trapped in my bottle.

 

I slow-comb the shore;

you head for the breakers.

 

Clams bake beneath

an unforgiving sun.

 

(First published in Eclectica Jan/Feb 2017.)

 

 


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