Watching a Gull at Cannon Beach<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
You stick your beak into everything:
\nwave-darkened pebbles, grayed scraps
\nof litter, drying carcasses, just in case<\/p>\n
there\u2019s a soft spot, an organ you can pluck
\nand swallow down your narrow throat,
\nsomething, anything to make a dent<\/p>\n
in your hunger. You peck everywhere
\nalong the beach, among things that defy
\nnaming, among your own feathers<\/p>\n
until you draw blood. But look,
\nthere\u2019s a pool of sunlight on the sand,
\nyours for the having, no need to poke<\/p>\n
anywhere, just move your craggy feet,
\nyour ruffled wings, lift your head
\nand draw the sunlight in. It\u2019s a different<\/p>\n
kind of emptiness than the one you fear,
\na place to rest, to feel warmth on your
\nback, no need to tuck your wings close<\/p>\n
to your body. Instead, spread them
\na little. There\u2019s no one here to begrudge
\nyou, to list all your failings. Here<\/p>\n
there is only you and sunlight, blinding
\nand beckoning, a spot of heat
\non a stormy beach. You\u2019d be crazy<\/p>\n
not to give up the hope of some stagnant
\nmorsel in favor of fullness that cuts
\nlike grace through the clouds. You\u2019d be<\/p>\n
crazy not to take your scaly feet and
\nlopsided wings, your empty belly, your
\nsharp beak and step into that circle of light.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“Watching a Gull at Cannon Beach” is reprinted from\u00a0Crab Creek Review.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Linda Strever\u2019s<\/a> poetry credits include Crab Creek Review;<\/em> <\/a>Spoon River Poetry Review<\/em>; CALYX, a Journal of Art and Literature by Women; Beloit Poetry Journal<\/em>; Nimrod, Floating Bridge Review,<\/a><\/em> and <\/em>others. Winner of the Lois Cranston Memorial Poetry Prize from CALYX Journal<\/em>,<\/a> her work has been a finalist for the Spoon River Poetry Review<\/em> Editors\u2019 Prize, the Crab Creek Review<\/em> Poetry Award, the Levis Poetry Prize, the Ohio State University Press Award in Poetry, the A. E. Coppard Prize for Fiction, and the William Van Wert Fiction Competition. She has an MFA in Poetry from Brooklyn College, City University of New York, and lives in Olympia, Washington.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Watching a Gull at Cannon Beach You stick your beak into everything: wave-darkened pebbles, grayed scraps of litter, drying carcasses, just in case there\u2019s a soft spot, an organ you can pluck and swallow down your narrow throat, something, … Continue reading