Form of Waiting

I can see why we invented this

Photo by Taylor Grote on Unsplash

There is the fisherman who catches fish,
the one who catches nothing, and the one
who throws them back — plentiful,

penniless, compassionate. A flick of the wrist,
a flashing eye, a caress of repetition,
both waveform and reel.

You can stand on the shore
and watch your son stand on the shore
and watch your daughter stand on the shore,

casting luck into undulation
of earth-passed water unlimited.
I can see why we invented this

across the ages — something that remains
while sand might come and go
in the pull of our waiting.

©️ Trapper Markelz 2022