A DIAMOND IN THE SEA

Children love the beach
They search for seashells and
Fill their pockets with their findings
And take them home as their prizes.
They don't need flowers or medals,
When they can hold the ocean in their pockets.
But as for me, I carry handfuls of rocks,
Skipping them while I sit on this dock.
Ignoring the children's boisterous play,
I lazily chuck one stone after the other;
I ignore the sunset and the wind,
Things that an artist would capture in paint.
My eyes watch as one rock jumps and falls and sinks,
Jumps and falls and sinks -- but wait
"No! Why did that last one gleam?"
It wasn't a rock but my wedding ring.
My heart jumps, and falls, and sinks.
The sun confirms my dismay as she
Falls beneath the atlantic bay.
There is no chance of reclaiming my loss,
No rope that could bait in that rock.
My cherished beloved -- the children still laughing,
Leaving me emptied of fishing,
I am lonesome and sick of the sea.