In Transit

A Poem

Dragonfly over koi fish waters,

The frog sits idle,

Storms ahead.

I drive through the jungle,

Emerge by the waters,

And leave the island.

I sit on top the boat

Hunched over railings,

Face to the wind.

Men pass Bintangs overhead,

Bottles return empty.

The smoke smells of yesterdays.

I listen for a language I understand

But cannot find one

In the loud rendition

Of my mother tongue.

I know only the ocean,

Speak in waves,

Tides at mercy to the moon.

My lungs burn a truth.

I hunger to roam wild

Like the island dogs –

Dirtied, uncollared,

Returning at dusk

Only

for a place

to rest.

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Dear friends and readers, my apologies for my brief absence. I took a little holiday and returned quite ill, hence the silence.

This poem is a collection of things that stuck with me from my recent trip - the island dogs in particular. There were so many dogs running free, lying in doorways, and walking the streets. I asked a local if they were strays, and he explained that your dog goes out and does its thing as it pleases. At night, it will probably visit you again for a meal and to guard the home, but it’s always free to roam. Not fenced up, not collared. I just loved that.

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