By the Water's Edge

I sit by the waters edge Sitting on the border of a concrete ledge Surrounded by miss-shaped rocks Formed by the years of repeated water knocks I throw a line in the water As a man sits next to me with his son and daughter On my line I get a bite The bait disappears with little fight I reel back in and rebait the rod And throw back out for the battle with the cod Suddenly I see a school of fish Hoping for every fisherman’s wish I recast trying to get the biggest and weightiest fish I see a cormorant tangled up sitting on a pylon Wrapped around his beak is plastic or nylon I get up to aid the injured bird But it fly’s away as soon as my footsteps are heard I go back to my battle with the underwater beast Still confident my patience will result in a feast The clouds come over and it begins to rain This just exacerbates my frustration and pain All of my attempts have so far been in vain But still I sit but wonder if I am still sane The rain begins to clear Perhaps now the fish will appear I can see a rainbow in the distance My mind wonders despite my resistance I try to focus on what I want to achieve I quickly realise that it’s the bounty of fish I want to receive It’s hard to fish with so many natural attractions Whilst not unpleasant they are unwanted distractions I ponder on these thoughts for a time so long And eventually I conclude this is wrong I reel back in my line with rod And forget about the fight with the cod I am going to enjoy just being here Such beautiful sites at a near The glistening of the sun reflecting on the water The earlier image of a father and his daughter The ripples and shadows the water creates The way the bird flew and never hesitates The way the fish refused to be caught The way the rain and fish together fought The rain gently dripping off my hat The way the cormorant on the pylon sat The way time seems to stand still The way nature can make a person feel I get lost in the moment and don’t want to leave Some of the things I’ve seen I can’t believe I should come down here without any fishing reasons How beautiful it would be in the different seasons I find myself content at the water’s edge I have never felt so comfortable sitting on a ledge