the beach vacation

it was the family

vacation

to the eastern shore.

the car 

packed with suitcases

and chairs,

buckets and toys.

towels

and pillows.

the kids in the back

seat, squirming.

bellowing a

are we there yet

chorus.

a four hour drive over

the bridge and down

50, through Berlin

and Cambridge.

Salisbury.

stopping for ice cream

at the Dairy Queen

along the road.

seven days and nights.

of sand, of surf.

a hotel on the shore.

all saved in pictures,

videos,

now in boxes,

in the cellar.

on a shelf somewhere.

with

the children now grown,

the marriage

dissolved.