Mock Eden

by Steffen Horstmann

We slept on the beach, our sleep serene.
The sea was lacquered with the moon's sheen.
In silence we watched stars careen
Down, the water blazed with their images.
The night evaporated like a dream.
On wet sand gulls' feet print sentences.
Old storms hide in seashells, their winds barren.
Clouds are suds draining into distances.
Ghosts still wander the reef, their haven.
Their voices the murmur of a crowd.
Each a guest in our mock Eden.
A freighter sails west like a slow cloud.
Bound for the world you dreamt we disavowed.