Wednesday, 6 March 2024

NOT KNOWING... (My new poem about going in the sea to bodyboard at Porthtowan on Wednesday, 6th March...)

 Not Knowing…



The hurry to be wet-suited was when the doubt set in.

The awkward steps down to the beach, exacerbated

By surf boots, my feet were made painfully uncomfortable 

By a multitude of rounded and sharp stones

En route to the ocean’s tidal retreat.

And I knew not why I was doing this at all.


The roar of lusty waves became a mighty din

As I neared the shallows, concerned rather than elated,

My distrust of Poseidon’s whims intolerable

But I plunged onward despite hesitant undertones

Into the rampant surf, which roared its deceit.

And I was thrust shoreward by a heaving wall.


The joy replaced the anxiety and I forced a chilly grin,

 Speeding onward until the motion dissipated.

As I stood and looked at mist and drizzle out to sea, visible

Was a huge arching rainbow, its hues just muted tones.

 Then one oystercatcher sped westward, its flight discreet

 And suddenly I understood why I was doing this at all…    



Pete Ray

6th March 2024…



Despite the concerns I have about bodyboarding, once in the sea, having sought the favour of Poseidon and having been granted a first, long, fast ride to the shore, I saw the obligatory oystercatcher fly across the shallows and then, dulled slightly by mist, a rainbow seemed to assure me that all was good with this recreational pursuit… 





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