they don’t rest, though it 

may look like 

they do,

anymore than we do ourselves

as our legs slide forward

over hillsides and uneven

ground. they tack 

with the effort of tugboats 

breaking even in a wash

of waves 

and tides changing, 

conflicting forces. they flip

and make measurements,

adjust for new directions. 

it’s wonderful, the mad

ticking upward, 

like the panic in the gears

of overwound watches, finding speed,

finding measure,

finding pace. 

©

DS Maolalai has been nominated four times for Best of the Net and three times for the Pushcart Prize. His poetry has been released in two collections, “Love is Breaking Plates in the Garden” (Encircle Press, 2016) and “Sad Havoc Among the Birds” (Turas Press, 2019).