Two Small Pebbles
I believe that we are eternal beings – that some of us who are here now have met before in other lifetimes, and will go on doing so if we remain true to love, which is the one force that can turn the tides and unite people in eras of war, division and disconnection. So keep the faith – a new age of love and loving is coming, and will probably reach the shore in about three years.
In the meantime, watch out for that little exquisite, half-familiar pebble that may suddenly and unexpectedly be sitting right beside you, proving beyond doubt that the miraculous is still possible. All comments, as always, are most welcome.
Two Small Pebbles
Two small pebbles washed up together
at the same time, in the same place,
after a whole tidewash of transformations;
two small pebbles named you and me.
We might call it a miracle,
or an accident – but, regardless,
the vastness of the sea still clings to us,
and we are close enough now to remember.
Originally published in The Chained Muse, and then in The New Lyre Poetry Journal.
Author’s Bio:
Poet, critic, and songwriter, Martin Mc Carthy, lives in Cork City, where he studied English at UCC and was awarded the Higher Diploma in Education. He is a contributing editor to the American poetry website, The HyperTexts, and writes a monthly column titled Poem in Focus. His poems and essays have appeared in numerous print and online publications, including: Poems from My 5k, Drawn to the Light, Seventh Quarry Poetry, Poetry Salzburg, The Road Not Taken, The Lyric, The Orchards, WestWard Quarterly, Lighten Up Online, Better Than Starbucks, The Madrigal, The Chained Muse, Form in Formless Times, New Lyre, The HyperTexts, The New Stylus, Southward and The Cathal Buí Anthology of Poetry. He has published three poetry collections: Lockdown Diary (2020), Lockdown (2021), and The Perfect Voice (2023). A fourth collection, The Book of Desire, is currently awaiting publication. He was shortlisted for the Red Line Poetry Prize, and is a nominee for the 2024 Pushcart Prize. He has a personal website at mccarthypoet.com, where a CD collection of his songs and other items can be purchased.
Thanks for visiting Martin Mc Carthy’s Poetry Substack! My work on Substack is free and will always remain so. Please support me by reading, commenting, and subscribing. Poetry is not only “the best words in the best order,” it is also a vessel for carrying the sacred, timeless soul of the world.
My friend, Geraldine, was reading Substack last week and suggested that it would be a great relief if someone posted a good love poem because the world seems so dark, bleak and miserable now, with so many wars breaking out that one might think that there is no alternative to it all. But there is ... and a new era of love and loving will follow this period of darkness. Let's do our part to usher it in. All comments are most welcome.
My sincere thanks and gratitude to my good friend Johanna @johannapansera for restacking "Two Pebbles" and for commenting also.