Untitled (“between basalt cliffs”)
By Uche Nduka
between basalt cliffs
no one mourns
the loss of statecraft.
a blaze over water
reminds a quayside
that soon the sea
shall round up stoneposts,
tapers and—
should the seafarer
invite tenderness to meander
through returning hairlines
should his fingers
become racy
or go idling through
wingtips of paranoia
—the sea shall watch itself
riot
and
reclaim the storm
that
snaps and screams
and
whirls past clambacks
porcupine quills
seeds of clover
flesh of tides.
Copyright Credit: Uche Nduka, "Untitled (”between basalt cliffs”)" from eel on reef. Copyright © 2007 by Uche Nduka. Reprinted by permission of Akashic Books.
Source: eel on reef (Akashic Books, 2007)