Half Dead on the Shore

The drawback of being
A terrific schemer
Is that scheming becomes

Insurance policy,
Circus acrobat’s net,
Retaining wall, levee,

And soon you find yourself
Depending on scheming
To save you at each end

Instead of beginning
And staying sensible
Through the middle of things.

Odysseus survives,
Yes, Odysseus gets
Home and triumph at last,

Yes, but Odysseus
Gets home last, after wrecks,
And wrecks, and wrecks, and wrecks.