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Avon by the Sea

I didn't pull my weight
The boss was really sore
He said "you're second rate
and I won't take it anymore."

He continued raving 
On how I was misbehaving 
Said my job was not worth saving 
And so I longed for Avon
Avon by the sea

I must go back to Avon
Avon by the sea
When my lifeboat needs a haven
When my problems need a maven
This is where I need to be

There's a ten-mile barrier island
It's not that far away:
Where ospreys touch down majestically
and beach forests gently sway.

But also on the Jersey shore
are the roots that once made me,
In the little town of Avon,
and when all the walls are caving
and hunger turns to craving
I retreat to Avon,
Avon by the sea

I took the train last September
Got off at Asbury Park
Strode the miles of boardwalk
Had to stop at coming dark.

I had regrets, I shed a tear
Then I saw a dolphin at setting light
At Ocean Grove I sat on a pier:
And on the shore it seemed alright.

I've paid my dues, I made my plea
They say I was guilty in the first degree
Let me lose the past in Avon,
I'll fly in like an escaping raven
Look! My friends are wildly wavin'
in Avon by the sea.

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Hilda Greenhough

Date: 2/10/2025 10:51:00 PM

Avon sounds like more than a vacation. It sounds like much needed therapy. And boss initiated, to make it worse. I like your poem for it's reasonable escape technique. A lovely poem.

Mark Springer
Date: 2/11/2025 4:39:00 AM

Thanks for the praise. I once met a retiree on the Jersey Shore who told me "Nothing beats the boardwalk". I hope to cycle much of the shore when the weather improves a little. Maybe it will inspire a follow up poem :)