On the Edge – a poem by John Hopkins

On the Edge


On the edge of an ocean front property in Maine,
at the foot of a red spruce,
are two partially submerged dress shoes.
They were there nine years ago,
the last time we stayed,
and even then we only just about
made out they were wing-tips.

Their laces are still stiff with rigor mortis,
each tongue too close to its sole to speak,
their eyes cataracts of lichen.
They do not see the tern glide, hover,
then dive for its food.

Their mouths no longer welcome the human foot,
only the twig and fruit of that spruce
they are slowly becoming.

Surely, we thought, the quaking aspens
will tell us the mystery of this why and how and when,
but soon enough we stopped listening,
went on with our day,
becoming ourselves again
only as we neared the edge of holy darkness,
and took off our shoes.

John Hopkins has been an English teacher for forty-two years. He was the New England Association of Teachers of English (NEATE) poet of the year in 2008. John’s poetry has appeared in Commonweal, Saint Anthony Messenger, The National Catholic Reporter, The  Leaflet, Sr. Melannie Svoboda’s blog, “Sunflower Seeds,” The Catholic Poetry Room, Amethyst Review, and Father Timothy Joyce’s book Celtic Quest. For the past six years, John has been a Benedictine Oblate affiliated with Glastonbury Abbey in Hingham, Massachusetts. He loves to read, write letters, tramp the Blue Hills, and play pickleball with Kerry, his amazing wife, and mother of their wonderful children: Kate, Danny, and Brian. In February of 2021, John’s first book of poems, Celtic Nan, was published, and in February of 2023, his second book, Make My Heart a Pomegranate was published. You can reach John at brotherjohnnyhop@gmail.com.