Lirica

The sea breeze bounces and rolls across the deck,

Flittering and fluttering and flapping

Towels and sun hats and every other cloth aboard.

The ship, at port, a standing floating

Maritime megalith of momentous Mediterranean

Class of cruise-liners.

Only at sea does one feel the pulse of life aboard –

Not just the sounds of every European tongue wagging,

But the subtle underfoot vibration of powerful engines,

The soft clinking and ice-in-metal clunking

Of the master of the mix-and-shake-and-pour,

The almost echo of metal knife-and-fork scraping

Against the glass and ornamental dishware within

The luxurious main dining areas.

This, all of this, just felt moments after stepping

Onto this sea-bound
Lirica.