I painted this piece in 2018, then wrote the follow poem for it this summer after a morning swim in the lake. They are each named the same.
The Deep End/2018
The Deep End / 2020
-
Running in
my quickened step
is gently slowed
at water’s edge
I strain my speed
to anxious trod
clumsy, prancing,
dolphin? fawn?
And deeper yet
this quiet swell
engulfs my thighs
now to a speed
Of flower girls
step-together-step
my rush transformed
to confidence
And deeper still
a chill, a calm
my neck embalmed
’til underneath
my torso lifts
there is no speed
but flow
and roll
a sway, a dance,
her rhythmic trance
then I am home.
The deep end.
•