USA

jessica.dekoninck@verizon.net

Traffic Jam

Summer sits southbound, stuck in shore traffic
back to back, bumper to bumper
All the same from here to Long
Beach Island. Radiators overheating
lopsided piles of bicycles and boogie boards
towels, umbrellas and water wings.
I put mine on to fly
above the crowd, take me
where I want to be,
secluded on a beach.
Daydreams melt like ice
cream cones one after another,
faster than I lick around the edges,
and you, Dreamsicle, nowhere
to be seen, except in my imagination
and memory. The boardwalk
at night, walking you
out of my mind.
Stuck here on the highway
as temperature rises
makes me think more
not less. My orange wings
bounce on the water. Waves
roll and break into white soft serve
less gritty than chocolate
more the way I think of you
a touch salty with an aftertaste
that stays with me on this road
even when I think I passed
my exit. You are sea foam.
I am a flying fish.

© Copyright, Jessica G. de Koninck.
All Rights Reserved. Printed By Permission.