Leviathan

if I button my eyes tightly enough
if I inhale completely enough

this heavenly body will flow from
my lungs, follow along my arms

its inhabitants will funnel through
my fingers, blotting a blank page

a spider descends on a silk tethered to a tree
she has a precise spot on the sand in mind

is she terribly disappointed to be nudged
off course by a cat’s paw puff of wind?

other beach dwellers are tethered
by their blankets and found things

hermit crabs in orange pails, spiraled
nests of grass green seaweed, a feather

the children battle the tide,
defend the homeland, erecting walls

of mud, sticks and clam shells
to shelter their sweat-built castles

the grown-ups resign themselves
to impermanence and migration,

kicking escaping flipflops, dragging
coolers & plastic boats to safer grounds

transient as well, the living surface
of the inlet, the once-only-ness

of its wind sculptured surface
& flamenco of light on its contours

we can claim the moment only in the moment,
our souvenirs but imprecise memories

if I unlatch, unhinge my mouth freely
if I exhale, puff out every atom of ink

a new world will rise up from
my diaphragm, pass through my heart

its eager emigrants will surge up
from my throat to people this page