Wamura Sleeps

stretched across the bay, his bones
a shining rampart, 51 feet high.

Ravenous waves rose from the sea
crests snarling white, 66 feet high

but turned back from the wall
he dreamed into being, 673 feet wide.

Fudai villagers walk their cliffs
staring down at water 330 feet below

and homes like tiny toys, scattered
on the slopes, a few feet above sea level.

Everyone said it was crazy, a waste
a project that cost more than thirty million dollars

but sleeping Wamura smiles, cradling
Fudai safe through one terrible moment.

From The Asian Reporter, V21, #11 (June 6, 2011), page 20
Collection available! Knocking from Inside