Swimming in the sea 
is no joke. 
The sharks
in the sea 
have rows of teeth 
that have been waiting 
since the Devonian

(when Ohio was under ocean)
to be caught in your flesh.

The land is your
reprieve 
from abysmal terror.
Land comforts 
until you forget 
the terror
rising from the deep.

A global rise of a degree or two 
separates your
coastal cities 
from dentricle skin of sharks
and a time when seven
generations of your children 
will curse you for your mindless 
spewing of
smoke and heat 
and dream of nothing but land, 
land,
land.


				Brandywine
				3/1/98