Miranda’s Quest

Dressed in waterproof leathers, Miranda’s sea salt
encrusted hair hung off shoulders in auburn clumps
held in place by a scuba mask, her heart shaped mouth
gasping for oxygen through a circus clown’s snorkel,
Bonzi tree trunk extending roots down the round airhole;
Miranda, sought Caliban’s protection under azure skies
draped across her body like a cobalt comforter,
providing brute warmth, bewilder beastly security,
safeguarding her freedom to marvel at new worlds
collecting insignificant—yet incomparable—treasures.
tides ebbing, flowing
shimmering beauty shrouded
beneath sandcastles

As moody as a ship’s cat, Miranda wandered coastlines
metal detector in one hand, burlap sack in the other
combing beaches at dawn, seeking thunder eggs among shells;
come twilight she spread oilcloth on redwood barbecue tables;
seagulls perched on outstretched arms, watching, resting,
eyeing colored glass shards worn smooth by sand,
a silver cornucopia of lost corns, pristine periwinkle shells,
& hollow spheres—rocks concealing sparkling crystals
hidden inside their coarse, igneous exterior—
volcanic ash layers reminiscent of her feral servant.
flipper-like footprints
dissolved in backshore waters
magical spells cast