Terrible Beauty

Yes, the world is still beautiful 
even while it's burning, or tectonically
sending giant waves across the globe 
that could wipe out entire towns 

including those with prime seafront 
properties vacant most of the year 
except at the peak of summer. I read,
once, about a boatload of souls— 

they too could have been on vacation
in the Mediterranean coast, except they
were refugees fleeing war. Instead of
ornate domes housing mosaic floors, 

a landscape outlined with smoke. A sea 
embroidered with garments of the drowned. 
Some of the bodies were so small. Some bore
scars from bullets, on their chests or foreheads.