Tethered, Empty, the Turquoise

Tethered, empty, the turquoise dinghy
gathers rain. Sooner or later, and not in any hurry,
someone will come to bail it out. Till then,
its water is a breeding ground for little things
that squirm and thrive but don't amount to much.
Do they prosper when they're thrown from fresh
into salt water? What happens to little thoughts
that fester in an unattended mind? What when
they meet the ocean of the outer world?

Oh turquoise dinghy, beautiful but usually all alone,
in plain sight hiding like a precious jewel unrecognized,
how many millions of minds with jewel-like radiances shine
and get a glimpse and a nod, and maybe move the heart a fraction
of some random passerby before being forgotten
as work calls, or supper, or the main event
with its blinding lights and illusion of success or failure
that we witness hungrily and are filled up with
ourselves, inconsequential vessels of the harbour all.

26 July 2021
Texas Jim
Prospect, Nova Scotia
www.granitecoast.ca