At the bay’s edge and day’s end, we comb
the shore for beach glass, clouded grains
of clarity among the ground-down,

Why are we tempted (and why do I ally
myself with “we” when I can only mean
myself with certainty … while certainty

Knowing that Penn had dabbled, periodically,
in paints, noting the modest watercolor

During his stay, he catches glimpses of the TV’s
glare, a black-and-white dim series

The morning new cement is laid—at last! —
along the perimeter of Penn’s remodeled highrise
(although the old had spalled, cracked and heaved

Because distance becomes tumescent in the heat
the haze erases buildings out of walking range.
We’ve considered walking as far as the backyard