Fishes Swam in Straight Lines
In the beginning, the sky was tall
and blue and quiet
and no birds dared cross it. My hands lay quietly in my lap. Rabbits move in orderly manner between the lettuce patch and their burrows. Fishes swam in straight lines two by two like Japanese school children
crossing the road
in a school outing.
One day my hands became wrestles
and so did yours
My hands flew in all directions
across the sky
setting a bad example.
Look how birds are scattered
all over the clouds.
Your hands
dashed left and right
as soon as you
plunged in the ocean.
They taught the fish
bad habits.
See them darting
like mad ants
across the ocean floor.
Soon, no one will remember
the beginning.
How stillness spilled
from the seams that held everything
the way a onesie
holds a chubby newborn
fresh and soft.
Soon, no one will know
that before rage and love, there was peace
in every breath and the breadth of the world
was at peace.
Riding Life’s Wave
Life's a voyage, sails embracing the ship,
Garments clinging to weathered wood.
I stand, taut against the relentless tide,
Seeking to cave not within a raging sea,
Resisting, unyielding, an anchor at my core.
Why do I crave for the boundless horizon even more?
Steamy skin, like salt-sprayed decks,
Pores like portholes to the vast expanse,
Why not speak like a sailor and take the plunge
Into abyss, ocean's depths, where sirens sing?
Why does life chants sea's hymns,
No nectar it provides, like an uncharted isle,
Yet its presence envelops,
Morphing to shapes beyond itself, like the tides' ebb and flow,
Lifeblood from depths unknown, like a compass true.
I navigate existence's shores, wading in,
Seabirds, seafoam, and the rolling surf, my companions,
Shovels sifting through sandy moments,
Life's pull on glistening shores,
Childhood bays of memories, first love crashing in waves.
My soles under the tug of life's relentless current
For we are mariners of life, drenched and forever afloat.
Patricia Furstenberg is a poet and writer, brings a unique blend of medical knowledge and artistic expression to her craft. With 18 books to her name, her writing is rich with history, folklore, and legends, often exploring themes of unconditional love and war. Her poetry and essays have graced the pages of esteemed online literary magazines. Originally from Romania, she now resides with her family in South Africa and blogs at https://alluringcreations.co.za/wp/
