Sailor Groom and Mermaid Bride

A thousand tumbles takes a bottle in the sea- a thousand tumbles and whirls and swoops. A million grains of sand takes that bottle in the sea, to break apart, and fragment like a snowflake fractal. How many waves carry it like the ocean taxi? How many mermaid miles till she hands that glass to me? For I've taken out my very-ness, for you. - And my crossness. My judgement and wrath. I've taken out slight hot breathe (for you to melt the ice on your whiskers.) I've taken out my toes when they are reaching for yours in the cavernous blanket world through the forest of our lazy limbs. I've taken out my righteousness and my second guessing. I've taken out for you (a surprise, a gift) all the times you were going to be wrong to me- and to wrong me... taken them out to sea, you see? In that bottle, pretty bottle. Broken now like too many vows. I've taken out my knowing best and finding better. I've taken out the half moon of your thumbnail as well ...I will miss that in my night sky- (perhaps I'll keep that after all.) I'll take out the complacency of holding your hand getting out of a chair. and the mindless strokes as you explain my commonplace crazy to simpler minds- I'll take out the very-ness of me, and the we-ness of us. and fill a bottle with a the brine of a thousand tears from hundred slights not slighted quite yet. I fill the bottle and gift the sea with the softness of you and the brashness of me. A thousand turnabouts it takes to reach you on the beach, a sea glass diamond ring, engage me you engaging man- and the tides tickles my feet in anticipation, marry me. marry me. just a sea glass promise for a mermaid bride waiting for the sailor man to sing her sweetly with salt on his lips Just a sea glass lullaby from the man who loves me so. Marry me, marry me And we drink sparkling water from a sea glass flute and we drink all the us and we drink all the we for sea glass could never hold a second in, sea glass is far too vain not to shine in the sun fanning your invite out in a spectrum of color that a small child's hand creates when he holds it up to the rays. Spills out all of my intentions Spoiled child, loved child, Spills out all of my intentions carelessly on the sandy floor for the tides to swallow whole. My sea glass prism chucked unceremoniously back to sea and me the mermaid bride left at her own alter... But a seashell to your ear and her my wailing sorrow calls, 'marry me, sailor. marry me.'