the strong taste of the sea
by Ben Nardolilli
Oystering in 1915, that’s what I’m dreaming about,
it’s not clear how accurate it is,
things look old, but I feel like they should look new,
new for 1915, before the rust,
wear, and obsolescence have all set it,
there’s talk of U-boats, which is reasonable,
and a fear we’ll be put under gas or oil rationing too,
we drink, spit, and curse the Kaiser,
limiting our utterances to the King’s English,
though I’m not sure where we are,
other than living together somewhere close to a sea
where the oysters flourish beyond
the borders that men are currently dying over,
and below the attempts of the evil Hun
to turn the ocean into a trap with mines and torpedoes
Ben Nardolilli currently lives in New York City. He blogs at mirrorsponge.blogspot.com and is trying to publish his novels.