Dangerous Scales

Most people think
Of the ocean as
Peaceful, serene;
But they could not
Be more wrong.

Beneath the waves
Lies a world full of
Dangerous scales.
Light up above and
Only death below,
And each current
Brings endless rows
Of predators’ teeth
And stifled cries for
Help, god, help
As they are ripped
To the bones.

Though it may be
A disquiet place,
The sea conveys a
Deeper balance of
Life and death.

MSBQ

Galathea

Peering down
Into the blue,
I lean forward
Letting gravity
Take over.

As the light fades
At lower depths,
The pressure is
Overwhelming.
I strain my ears
To hear the sound
Of waves above.

I may speak the
Tongues of whales
But when I listen
To voices among
The tide pools,
Their messages
Are always lost.

With each layer
Of ocean that I
Pass through on
My path into the
Endless abyss,
My eyes gaze in
Both wonder and
Horror at what
Travels here
Down below.

MSBQ

Descent

Hold your breath:
You’ll need all the
Air you can get.
Fill your lungs,
Because tonight
We shall explore
The depths of me.

Years of murky guilt
Float past us during
Our lengthy descent.
Tiny moments of
Regret burst, silently,
Sending up a wave of
Bubbles trailing to
The distant surface.

The seafloor emerges
From below, littered
With the thoughts
I pushed overboard
Long ago, things
Left to the sea,
Never to return.

You nod, eyes closed;
This is where you will
Remain with me.

MSBQ

Weekend Warriors

Saturday journeys
A silvery bug
Skittering across the map
Three to one
Cold waves brush my ankles
Ribbons and sugar
A red wandering, we
Refused to stop
The kind of memory
That tastes sweet
Upon your tongue, lungs
Filled with salt
Yellow lines and forest
On either side
Sunlight leaks through the
Sylvan green shadows
Illuminating the reality of it all
We are free

MSBQ