I’m often surprised there is
no proverb that warns us
not to fall too much in love
with our homes, for even homes
we own are still on loan. Water always
finds a way, as my super likes to say.
Between the rectilinear granite wall
that holds the Hudson back
and Hudson Street three blocks
inland—the river’s original scalloped
shore—you’ll find the former
maritime village full of models
of adaptive reuse including
the converted 19th-century warehouse
that’s our long-time address.
But the river’s tidal down here,
in cahoots with the bossy moon.
I’ve seen it rear
its hind quarters and buck
its girdled border. I’ve seen
it slobber and saturate
the earth and reach east
in its long campaign to retake
the street that stole its name.
The water wants out. The water
wants its rightful border back. I feel
the pressure build, systems out
of whack. I close my eyes and see
our Cuisinarts and Macbooks bobbing
on crests on the way to the swollen sea.
I’m hopelessly in love with my life
in this home hard by the water
and want to stay. I pray
that we will find a way.
—
Michele Herman’s novel, Save the Village, was a finalist for the Eric Hoffer Prize, and she’s published two chapbooks: Victory Boulevard and Just Another Jack. Her work has appeared in recent issues of Carve, Ploughshares, The Hudson Review, The Sun and LitHub. She’s a devoted teacher at The Writers Studio.
