My Good Fortune

My Good Fortune

A surfer has caught the wave;
He stands shakily at the brink and
from the crest, the view is magnificent,
breaths come hard and quick.

In a moment he will descend into
the trough and speed under the curl;
certain failure surrounds him,
yet he remains firmly in place,
his eye on the light at the far end.

His only real skill
he has gleaned from this
natural world - balance, otherwise
only a little foresight and good karma
presage each move afoot.

He wonders, with the noise
and immensity of the ocean
around him, how he got here:
just paddling around minding
his own business.

He hopes this ride will never end
Keeping good images, leaving
his wake of good moves,
aware of his fragility.

But treading water, like life
can only last so long
So, on the cusp of things
is the best way to die.

In lieu of giving up
or beginning again
I leave him there hanging ten;
My alter ego until further notice.

And when the sand is all that is left
and the ocean of my good fortune
has receded, I will move on
to the next big wave.

SAR 2000