Milton P. Ehrlich
The Only Moment
Seabirds screech an ominous warning
to make ready—your boat is about to sink!
I see you smiling ear to ear
perched on the bow of your schooner—
the one and only moment in your life
when you felt the ecstasy of being fully content.
An avalanche of waves washes the smile right off your face.
Hungry sharks sink their pearly-white teeth
into you and color the ocean red.
Do the dead man's float—ride the giant sea swell to shore,
the key to your next life lies buried in the sand.
Bio
Milton P. Ehrlich Ph.D. is an 89-year-old psychologist and a veteran of the Korean War. He has published poems in The Antigonish Review, London Grip, Arc Poetry Magazine, Descant Literary Magazine, Wisconsin Review, Red Wheelbarrow, Christian Science Monitor, and the New York Times.