The Seaside Within Me
by Jeannie E. Roberts

“In the end, I want my heart to be covered in stretch marks.”
–Andrea Gibson, American Poet and Activist (August 13, 1975 – July 14, 2025)

After many a summer
in the green unending of my garden
where the serenade of bees hummed
with the keepers of color
phlox
iris
and lilies held my hand
as I stepped inside the drum of my essence
experienced the blooms and wounds
the pinks
purples
and lavenders of my life.
Here
in the orbit of being
summer became fall.
The maple trees had lost their leaves
though the seaside within me
revealed an ongoing glow
where aqua skies
echoed oceanic views.
On the beach of my soul
etched with both delight and despair
my heart was covered in stretch marks.



 

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