Old lady of the sea lays in a watery sleep
serene and unencumbered by time
deep feldspathic roots defy her age
she lies one minute for our thousand years
unconcerned with joys and grief.
Abyssal tides scour her flanks
running fast in deep gouged channels
that sweep troubles away from arching sands,
headland and Puffin holes
to where the ocean calms and stills.
And here by crags, caves and battered cliffs
is the distant droning trill of a thousand gannetts
that thread their languid airborne paths
in a gentle waltz of love and affirmation
and pierce the heaving sea to relieve it of its riches
as it rolls and draws in rhythmic slaps
and sweeps soft into flaxen filled bays.
She hints at her story with half hidden trophies
of ancient stone and concrete pillar, trough and tunnel,
conceals old pains and claimant scars
in a tangle of thorns, gorse and berry
with heady scents that sweeten sad memories
dissolve all pain
cleansed in the warm brackish breeze.
Wisps of past torment are distant echoes
and no longer gnaw on her bones
she is serenity and comfort, healing and peace
a haven of bliss in the blue.
Poetry Atlas has a number of other poems about the Channel Islands.