FROM DREAMS OF DREAMS OF THE SEA AND ME (FOR TONI M.)

   FROM DREAMS OF DREAMS OF THE SEA AND ME
   (FOR TONI M.)

Standing, staring seaward,
Sore eyes see the horizon resting content
On the frothing pillows of the beaconing sea;

Here I stand consumed in the web 
Of lingering thoughts spun from dreams of dreams
Somehow always dreaming back to me:
Incomplete
Drifting dreams deferred.

The sun peeks out under shades of clouds reflecting
Sable apparitions: Beautiful blackbirds’ breasts 
Gleam with ebony luster.

(Sweet silent stares, shatter.)

The chilled ocean breeze conjures
Whispering echoes of screams:

Ancestral moans and groans echo
From the bowels of sunken ships;

Staring seaward, stepping sand
Backwards, I leave fading footprints.

The echoes follow.