Three Poems

The Charity of Dolphins

If we were more cautious or more reckless
but being careful as people are with money
we might have lived until a severe frost
carried one or both of us off in one maverick winter.

Taking a lilo to the beach at night and dressing
it like a bridal four-poster and drinking a small
amount of wine seemed a good idea at the time.

The trouble started when the wine removed your night
dress and the distant lights rounded your breast
and I, listening at your neck, didn't hear the tide.

But we are too different now to care for time or tide
and recklessly let the bed slip its moorings and slide
into the deep. If we live this night out
it will be down to luck or the charity of dolphins.


On Solving Problems
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