Tag: shoreline

Poetry by Patrick JenningsOct 9, 20223:45 pm

Rain Abated, Cannon Beach, Oregon, United States of America

Stormy Solitude

Rain abated
Dimpled sand dries in Rorschach patches
Sky a mottled grey
A single darkened cloud
Mimics patterns in the sand

Some might wish for the sun
To feel the heat on their skin
Or rising from the scalding sand
Secure in the haven of a beach towel
Beneath an umbrella in a sea of beachgoers

But I prefer this solitude
Shared only with the rumbling surf
And the gull idling by
On the penetrating wind
Which tousles my knotting hair

Draw my windbreaker tight against the insistent chill
Rub some warmth into my thighs through the denim
All the while engaging the impression
That I have this spectacular planet
All to myself

Poetry by Patrick JenningsOct 7, 20227:43 pm

Haystack Rock, Cannon Beach, Oregon, United States of America

Surf Song

With gentle insistence
The ocean rises up to greet me
And I, pant legs rolled to my calves
Welcome it’s cool, frothy embrace
Enjoy the caress of water over my ankles
The sensation of sinking into the sand
As the receding wave draws the beach
From beneath my feet

I stay there for an hour or so
Take a few steps back
When the waves threaten my trousers
A few steps forward
When they fail to reach me
My sandpiper dance
In time with the surf song
And its choir of gulls

Poetry by Patrick JenningsOct 5, 20221:29 pm

River to the Sea, Cannon Beach, Oregon, United States of America

Overcast, Serene

On a cool, calm morning
Overcast, serene
The river and the people
Flow out to the shore
There to be lost
In their own way
To the surf and the sea

Poetry by Patrick JenningsSep 18, 202212:57 pm

Perfect Beach Day

Many will argue
Or just stay home
But there seems to me
No finer day
For a stroll on the shore
Than one marked
By a chill spring wind
Under a deep grey sky
Spitting rain and mist
In the temperate rainforest
That created the magnificent
Oregon coast

Poetry by Patrick JenningsJul 27, 20226:07 pm

Haystack Rock

A seductive rock
On ocean’s edge
Half the day
Surrounded by the tide

Attracting thousands
Nature’s iconic monument
To a monumental coastline

In time with the waves’ ungentle caress
They saunter near, then scramble back

This flightless flock of sandpipers

Photographs and selfies
Arm-in-arm and hand-in-hand

A deep breath in, a longer one out
The calm that comes on any shore
Where the surf rumbles and sighs

Some may say it’s the rock
But the rock is a draw as any other draw
A pier, a lighthouse, beach chairs and gazebos
It is the sea which helps us remember ourselves