it happened when Nick was 19 …he was so fed up with fisherman’s stew…fed up 
with fishermen who 

slurped it …. 

day…after…

day…from

styrofoam cups…fed up 

from hearing his Pappoo call, 

“have a light sleep” to 

him as he walked away from 

the family’s snack bar …
like an ugly woman in

a beautiful dress…9 years of 

splintery walks across the 

old pier followed him and

….SUDDENLY…

she caught him …

twisted his ankle til the

sky turned green 

as

seaweed colored emeralds on her

wet wistful eyelashes… 
looking back …he wondered if 

she had given him the evil eye…but…

at the time … 

at the time… 

at the time …

he was only watching how 

she pulled her green waves higher and 

higher like hurricane hemmed 

dresses in summer but here he was in 

fall… he was past all that…. past time to envy porpoises … porpoises who seemed to laugh at Nick.. Nick who’s purpose was to serve fisherman’s soup in styrofoam dishes… she pulled 

him into seas of envious eyes… 
together they 

swam in circles of self pity …scoured

sands for successes granted to 

other peoples…and arranged them like sea shells …on a coffee table …until…
…until..until…Papoo… Papoo.. 
…Pappouli……..
called his last “good night” …and

was buried like 

hidden treasure …Nick could never …ever…find… but..

tried to…
he looked for 

Pappoo in plastic spoonfuls at soup selling stands ..his

beard grew so 

long it caught 

splintery whiskers year after

year 

….until…

finally he dared

porpoises to laugh…tied

an apron around his 

waist … 

picked up 

Pappouli’s ladle and poured

himself 

fisherman’s stew