This is my first attempt at a poem in more than 45 years. I’m not making any claims for it except to say that it turned out better than I would have expected.

Now, here

You need both:
either on its own —
city cacophony or feature-
less country soundscape —
will soon unmoor the real.
The sea at least
masks our tinnitus.
That’s why I crave
a city with a beach.
Barcelona’s facing the wrong way:
into the enclosed Med,
not open to the ocean.
Aim to reach Bayonne reason —
past the logos, but with-
out leaving them behind.
Surf on waves of words;
catch a tide that turns.