Poem – Bob’s Terminal Bay (By Frank De Canio)

Bob’s Terminal Bay

Wracked by cancer, Bob Marley told his friend,

“It’s not me, Camille.” No, it’s never me

when self-determination’s at an end.

For, navigating pain, you cannot see

but knots ahead. And you’re preoccupied

with hoisting sails against prevailing winds.

Bravado in your weary crew has died.

A glance into the water shows the fins

of sharks that prey upon engulfing fear.

And battered by the gale you veer off course

until outlying moorings disappear.

Directions lost, mirages reinforce

your desperate quest to cast yourself ashore

where shrieks are muffled by the ocean’s roar.