Fiction and Poetry

Le Suquet
by Ruth Mark

Walking Home from Le Quattro Porte around Midnight
by Jackie Goyette

The Wait
by Jim Nasium

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Fiction and Poetry

Le Suquet
by Ruth Mark

The worn cobbled streets beckon her forward
Winding deep into the heart of the old part of town.
Vendors display their wares
A rainbow of fabrics the backdrop
The smell of kebabs
Tinged with a hint of garlic,
While bunches of lavender
Packaged in cellophane
Rest on benches on every street's corner.

Leather is displayed in abundance here.
Coats, bags, belts, and shoes
Hang high above her vision.
A fruit market, the day's Special
Heaped clementines: 10 francs for 2 kilos,
Huge pyramids of walnuts
Boxes of dates and saffron you can buy by the ounce
Clamor for her attention.

People are everywhere
Browsing, buying,
Or simply passing through
While the castle high on the mountain
Surveys the entire drama unfolding.
Trinkets, olive oil,
Table-cloths designed for tourists
Spill out of the shops
In a colorful parade.

Her heart belongs to this part of Cannes
Where locals haggle for the best price
And ladies meander with their little dogs
Both coiffured to cat-walk proportions.
A rich tapestry of life is displayed here
In all it's dimensions
Modern, yet curiously frozen in time.

© Ruth Mark 2000

Ruth Mark is a licensed psychologist and freelance writer. Currently living in The Netherlands she was born and raised in Northern Ireland. She has been published in many web and print venues including: Riviera Reporter, Dakota House Journal, E-This!, Marie Claire etc. Her favorite poet is Seamus Heaney.

Other articles by Ruth Mark:

• Dunn na ngall (Donegal)