Sapphire Sky

      Sitting on the Brant Beach bulkhead
At the end of the street, hard by Barnegat bay
      An auburn sunset too early in the day

      Drew to a close a cold January afternoon
That once had seen, several hours earlier
      The deep azure of a sapphire sky

      Stretched like a sail full of breeze
Crisp across the expanse from bay to ocean
As far as the eye of the imagination could wander
      And wonder

      Mid-morning, the color was closer to the fruit of sassafras
With island vegetation acting as the laurel for the planet
And just before sun-up, anticipation for the center of the universe
Produced memories of the stigma of the saffron
      Bright orange against the petals of purple.

      Ah, the many shades of sky
Removed each nighttime to reveal the translucent onyx behind it
As deep as any thought that might have escaped
      From a philosopher lost in space

      Oh, the many shades of sky
Each paralleled on the ground by the many blues
That occupy as many samplings of emotions
From predatory beasts and hunted species
      And human frailities alike

      Yes, the many shades of sky
With a thousand other variations of cotton, watercolor, ink, mud and blood
Generated by passing storm fronts
      In various stages of battle with disintegrating high-pressure systems

      Indeed, the many shades of the sky
While sitting on the Brant beach bulkhead
At the end of the street, hard by Barnegat bay,
      An auburn sunset too early in the day


For Conversations With Walt
By Denis J. Kelly
June 29, 2011