Half satisfied by sleep woken to another day an intimate view through a lighted porthole testing the world of sentimental pragmatism where nothing is believed nothing felt nothing sensed beyond the prestige of a good credit rating and all the empty promise that holds unwilling to experiment with life in all its blissful possibilities casting their fate to the wind afraid to absorb nature into their core and feed upon its essence until it can be seen in everyone in everything and to let its spirit play within the world The clouds that darkened the horizon gathered in his mind The promise he had heard so long ago that when the time had come the sea would free him he had sailed to the ends of his world and there he lay becalmed on its edge a fragile hulk sketched blackened and charred rose in the swirling fog the vessel drew alongside he fancied he saw at its dark rails all in shadows faces he knew people times moments of his life each one a mistake they were holding out their arms as if to call him to their embrace the pain he had brought he to them they to him wracked his body he was in their thrall now he could no longer resist
