Stefano craved a modicum of everything:
the gist of every book ever written,
the keynote of every piece of music,
a kiss from every woman he passed on the beach,
a bite of every fruit and vegetable, fish and flesh,
a taste of every dollop dropped into a soup
Exhausted by his thoughts, he ordered a platter
of burritos and beans at the Mexican restaurant
on the dock where tourists left the cruise ships,
contemplated what a fool he had been
No one had ever been able to do what he wanted to do,
have a nibble of everything
After he had wiped his plate clean,
he used a paper napkin,
pushed back the salt charred chair and started up the beach,
lessons unlearned, eager to find the girl of the day
A conch shell rolled past his feet out of the froth
and he took it as a sign
The sky looked so big above the blue water he felt afraid,
felt very, very small diving into the sea