January Image…
Like January winds whip white spume
From an irritable tide,
Snow drifts across a sullen quay;
It dabs its powdery essence into
A thin lining across an incongruous bench;
But on such a day, there is but little to see…
A rusting upright reaches high
To offer some kind of rudimentary light,
Dwarfing a tarnished, rope-scarred mooring post;
Abject life-rings hang, unused and forgotten,
A vacant iron ring awaits a returning vessel
From its harrowing fishing trip along the coast…
White surf taunts an ancient slipway,
Tiny windows leave stout walls to take
The buffeting of winter’s stormy gales;
Slim portals, their paint sorely peeled
From constant use and cruel weathering,
Shudder and creak as the cold squall wails…
A drenched, sturdy quayside ladder
Guides one’s gaze into a squabbling surf,
Angry at the inconvenience
Of barriers and obstacles and intrusions
Prompted by the fisherfolk, the sea harvesters,
Who to often suffer and pay a terrible penance…
Pete Ray
December 2017
The January image from Kirsty Elson’s 2018 calendar…
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