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Rogue Wave

by Kyle Potvin

Last week we stood on opposite coasts:

On the Florida side,
Waves ran at my feet
Snatching bits of sand
From underneath,
Persistent
As the land-grabbing cancer
Cells inside me.
I wondered how long
I could stand before, unbalanced,
I'd float away, buoyant and hollow -
Empty as a jelly fish.

And you, a continent away:
I imagine your last thoughts -
Chicken for dinner, This awful cold -
Before - trying to save your dog -
You were swept away
By the rough Pacific.

Back home I stand,
Sand still draining
Through my hourglass toes
And I wonder, Molly:
Was it a relief to be taken
Unexpectedly,
Without notice?

Kyle Potvin is principal of a public relations firm in New England. Her poetry has appeared in publications including The Lyric, Iambs & Trochees, Literary Mama, Trellis Magazine, JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association), and The 2008 Poets' Guide to New Hampshire. Kyle's story was also featured in The New York Times' "Well" blog along with one of her poems. Kyle and fellow poet, Tammi Truax, recently founded the "Prickly Pear Poetry Project: Processing the Cancer Experience Through Poetry," a workshop for survivors and caregivers. She is a two-year breast cancer survivor.