somewhere i have never been

Somewhere in the world
a beautiful woman
runs through white sand even though
a book sits absorbing sunlight at
the edge of a blue towel.
And there’s probably even a field out there
with tall yellow sprouts
that swing in the wind,
whipping pollen across the sky
like birdshot.
Perhaps a small child,
while learning to ride a bike under
mother’s watchful push
falls, cracks
a bone, and can
never
trust
again.
Somewhere a summer day starts
with the promise of success
for a young businessman and his
pigeon-faced trophy wife.
Somewhere far away
people drink and yell
into their plastic cocktail glasses—
a DJ plays a famous song
I’ve never heard and
bodies bounce like felt hammers
across wire.

I’d really like to be
at somewhere
someday,
if only to feel the warm sand on my feet,
the wake around my pantleg,
or the satisfaction of wasting money
on an expensive drink (or companion)
to scream at.
Life goes on
but hopefully I’ll find a good passage
in some old book
to give me back the beach,
the wife,
the child,
and all the drunken nights
I’ve missed.

Roderick Burroughs