by Kevin Norwood

Marco Island

Florida, November 2021

Waves lap cautiously at the shore,
where a one-legged sandpiper

hops and pecks at biofilm
shimmering in mid-morning sun.

We step carefully around and over
the morning’s wide swath of shells,

mindful of our bare feet; stooping
here and there to pick up specimens

I will cradle in the tail of my shirt
until we scuttle back to our beach chairs,

like two crabs heading back to the sea.

 

Kevin Norwood is the winner of The Porch Poetry Prize 2020. Kevin is a long-time corporate attorney with a law degree from William & Mary. He obtained Bachelor and Master of Arts degrees in English from the University of Virginia. He is the father of two and currently lives with his wife in Brentwood, TN.