Ephram Pratt Speaks in the Language of Seals
       

He lived near the sea
and his days were filled

conversing softly with
deceased mermaids,

but from them
he learned

the language of seals,
the grunts, the whistles,

the body language,
the subtle eye movements.

The cottage on the cape
was filled with ancestors,

peopled with tiny clones
of whoever lived there.

Only in the shadows
did he allow himself to speak

the language he knew so well,
he loved so insanely.

Why should he not speak
with seals?

The language known by poets
since time began.

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Copyright © 2019 Jack e Lorts All rights reserved
from The Love Songs of Ephram Pratt
Uttered Chaos
Reprinted by Verse Daily® with permission