Clam
He didn’t know how to handle it, the sheer
heat of Crete; nor
the first sight of her, bikini pink, and later
sauntering around carefree
in even less,
through the clam of every evening.
And he’d certainly never seen
a cockroach before. It scooted up
their wall, brazen and antennae led—
she leapt straight out of bed! But
this one hadn’t counted on
the soul of a size eleven shoe.
While she drew a star in her diary, he
flung open the windows
each sultry morning, looked out
across the milky Mirabello Bay,
then down below, where
right on queue, Adonis
hosed down the tacky taverna floor,
leaving him to remember
what was cold and rain
© copyright David F. Barker 2012
Ciscography 
Milky Mirabello Bay…wow!
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nice…i like the close on the wet and rain…really nice piece…i like the clam of the day…neat phrase i had not heard…and she of course sounds beutiful…smiles…you bult this well david…
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That’s funny.
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Lovely image, sounds so romantic. I hate roaches, though… glad you had a shoe handy.
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Nice capture of the heat and the milky bay…..the sight of the cockroach will make me scream too ~
Enjoyed the visit ~
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nice…crete must be awesome..haven’t been there yet..but on my list..bikini pink…i like…but i hate roaches..ugh..
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I love the details in this poem, especially those in the last two stanzas and the way you depicted the coming of rain.
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This reads really well, and phrases like bikini pink and antennae led are pleasing to the eye … Nicely done 🙂
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I have been following for awhile. I like this one the best.
Can’t tell you why; it just hit me.
Scott
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Hah! For me, not a cockroach in Crete, but a gecko in Kos! Fab read. 🙂
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I love the imagery!
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Enjoyable! So much said with so few words.
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woooww!! this is amazing.. 🙂
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Hi David, what a lovely holiday memory 🙂 and a great view!
I once was on a ship with cockroaches in the messroom, yuck! 🙂
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What a wonderful picture you paint, David, as always! This stanza made me smile and thankful it was only great imagery~ 🙂
And he’d certainly never seen
a cockroach before. It scooted up
their wall, brazen and antennae led—
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Really evocative and vivid, a lovely take on the prompt.
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I love reading this poem as a metaphor for two people from opposite types of “climates” spending intimate time together!
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wonderful poem, David.
Ciao, Francina
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What a wonderful scene you’ve created here!
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The immediacy of the language is what makes this. That and the vision of love expressed in a hot, alien climate away from the chills of home. Good work.
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