The Pearl Has No Choice
A poem of missed opportunities
Published in
2 min readJul 9, 2019
On the shore did you stand
while the ship of opportunity
cruised by in waters rough?
Did you not see its shadow,
hear its siren calling
you forth into the tide?
Did you not see others, once like you,
standing on decks and
beckoning you forward?
Was the fog too thick,
your eyes too veiled,
the rain too heavy?
Didn’t you see the beacon light
searching across waves
for the newest passenger — you?
Or, perhaps, you were too weary
from landlocked life
and stony paths?
Maybe, you slept on the sand
in a coma of exhaustion
and missed the invitation?
It may be you saw all,
heard all, and chose to
remain steady on the shore
For steady is suitable
and snug like quilts in winter,
and who would fault that?
