Chip chip Reward
These wet rocks,
where the tide has been,
Barnacled white and weeded,
Brown sandals gingerly,
Wend their way across as if,
Asking questions of ocean stir,
Still clinging to soles and stone,
Some days a catch of shells,
Settle in between crevasses,
Waiting willingly to flavor a pot,
So they come searching with,
Buckets and pails for the reward.
© gillena cox 2026
Note: Chip chip" refers primarily to small Donax coquina clams found on the east coast beaches of Trinidad, particularly in Mayaro. They are a popular local seafood delicacy, often boiled, cleaned to remove sand, and prepared in curries or as "chip chip accra"[from google]
LISTEN
Challenge: to take inspiration from the opening line from Edna St Vincent Millay’s poem “Low tide.”
These wet rocks where the tide has been, barnacled white and weeded brown. In writing a new poem.
❧✿❧