Dylan Webster

Dylan Webster lives and writes in the sweltering heat of Phoenix, AZ. He is the author of the poetry collection Dislocated (Quillkeepers Press, 2022), and his poetry and fiction have appeared, and are forthcoming in journals such as Pennine Platform, Amethyst Review, The Cannons Mouth by Cannon Poets Quarterly, Ballast Journal, Wild Roof Journal, Rise Phoenix College Journal, Ghost City Review, Resurrection Mag, 5enses Magazine, Last Leaves, and The Chamber Magazine. He has also been included anthologies by Quillkeepers Press, Neon Sunrise Publishing, and The Words Faire. He has been nominated for Best of the Net. He can be found @phoenicianpoet

PANTOUM OF THE CHILD IN THE OCEAN

Perhaps it’s simply in his blood,
A drive to dive into the ocean.
As his father I fear it’s reckless,
But as a man I envy those handfuls of pebbles,

Their drive to dive into the ocean,
Impelled by mere imagination and wonder.
As a man I envy those handfuls of pebbles,
Smoothed by saltwater and swathed by a child.

Impelled by mere imagination and wonder
My son, at only six, challenges the sea —
Hair smoothed by saltwater and swathed as a child,
He emerges from the waves seeking my hand.

My son, at only six, challenges the sea,
Regathers more smooth stones as gifts,
Submerged by the waves, he seeks my hand —
A game of give and take between god and child.

He gathers more smooth stones for gifts.
Perhaps it runs in his blood,
This game of give and take between god and child —
As his father, I envy his recklessness.