On Sand and Steps
None could wash away
Sandy sorrow and surges
when too many steps
needed to be taken urgently.
My thigh hurts from a pull
because I am unreal, ungraceful
in keeping blind rhythm masterfully
unreal for walking in the dark, and
I fell at the bottom of the stairs
flying like a fledgling on nested steps
catching my foot on an invisible edge
She said to
turn off my flashlight
because the looters she knew
would know she left her apartment
She needed to charge her phone
to talk to her real friends
in the real world
Seems that I, being unreal,
can’t see in the dark,
missed a step,
fell, and
we went to
charge her cell phone
near the security booth
where they hide guards
and do nothing, a light light
house like Potemkin’s façade
There’s a generator at the booth
where she can charge her cell phone
talk to her real friends
in the real world
Unreal in the dark
without heat
without hot water
wet faces are not washed
dirty, filthy tides cry, but
the ocean is more beautiful
and magnificent than the mud
of the tidal marauders, and
the seagulls sang more sweetly
than the people on the street
as I wandered through debris
on the beach with flashlight on
watching a Dredge pipe spray
new sand for replenishment
new food for seagulls, and
food for thought that
wiggles like worms and clam bits
— Douglas Gilbert
Poetry and Stuff 
I like the changes you’ve made and the added lines in the last stanza. Food for thought huh? I’ve always loved that saying. I liked all the ‘real’ and ‘unreal’ usage. Though, in real life it’s never feels good to be treated or made to feel as if you are unreal. oh yeah, I liked the fledgling metaphor too…i’m really tired, this probably isn’t a great comment, i’ve already deleted a paragraph because i started rambling on about these bird salt and pepper shakers i saw. Ugg, there i go again, i should just go to bed…good night.
Thanks. I didn’t know that birds use salt and pepper shakers. I guess when they have to eat too many worms, a little salt and pepper would make it taste more interesting. Well, since I have the set up already, I thought maybe I should ramble on with a new addition. I don’t know if it’s going to work, but I just put it out quickly in “Draft 3″ and maybe I can make it into something. It’s become more of a bizarre story. Maybe it could be a poem eventually… I don’t know.
(giggling) Yeah, i thought maybe my birds that come to the feeder would like some extra seasonings with their songbird mix.
Really though they were very light blue, bird shakers. I was out shopping for a wedding gift at Macy’s, i saw them and thought they were SO cute and i wanted to buy them but i didn’t because even though they’re only 15.00 it seems like a lot to spend on something i don’t actually need. Maybe i should’ve bought them, since i’m still thinking about them a week later, hehe! I never did find a gift for the bride and groom either…
Yeah, I could see how the bird shakers would look good perched on a shelf waiting to be used. Shopping displays can be distracting, but that’s why they want people in the store for one thing and expect them to see something else. It would be nice to be able to buy the store and browse after hours. I think that a store would be a good wedding gift. Or maybe an island or small country or a silver spoon or the moon (if it’s for sale — not sure who has the deed).
Those would all be great gifts! I took the easy route and gave them a card with a check inside. Seems like everyone always likes to get more money. Then they can buy whatever they like with it. I’m sure that if she wanted the moon he’d try to get it for her…although i would’ve never thought that the moon would be for sale – i suppose i just thought it was one of those things that belonged to everyone who ever lived that could see and enjoy its beauty. Gosh, i have a lot to learn about real estate and territories huh?