Underwater Memory

The summer before seventeen

Stepping back into 

My sandy, childhood, summer shoes 

They take me to

Hampton Beach house stays

In the warm arms of 

Aunts, Uncles, Grandparents, 

It's been too long, 

And this time, 

I'm almost seventeen. 

This time, 

There's a more fragile heart

In my chest beating. 

In the room of too air conditioned basement

I slip on the old, black bathing suit

While my mind is jeering a thousand different names. 

Then, I push through 

The curtain of my thoughts

And tiptoe purposefully across

Summer day heated deck. 

I am in pursuit of 

Silence, 

I am driven to 

Experience 

To become 

Even if for a moment, 

Nothing...

And so I do. 

With a honey glaze sky ripening above me 

I take in the pool water 

Rippling softly with lack of 

Suffering 

And as I wade in, 

Cautiously, 

I am overwhelmed with the peace 

And acceptance

The water holds

And gives

Unconditionally. 

My curls

Knotted and dry 

Swirl around me as I immerse

And I close my eyes, 

My bitter lips, 

And my tired mind

At last. 

In the pool depths 

I am filled with a void

So rich...

You cannot possibly buy it, 

It is an escape from

A barrage of noise

Noise, 

That I regret to inform you, 

Only got louder

By the time I arrived

In September. 

This moment was

The calm before the hurricane

Of the no-one-sees-it

Kind of pain

And I would not be okay. 

As I emerged

From the sacred water

I inhaled the scent of an ocean 

Murmuring nearby

And the smell of all the peaches

I had eaten that summer, 

All the things 

I had not, 

And the weight of the world

Bore down on me again. 

The moment was over, 

Droplets dripped from shoulders, 

But it taught me 

Of the gift 

That is a moment

Of silence, 

Of the gift 

That is a moment 

Of pure quiet. 

Reviews

[Coyote Poetry]

You are a amazing writer.
"The moment was over,
Droplets dripped from shoulders,
But it taught me
Of the gift
That is a moment
Of silence,
Of the gift
That is a moment
Of pure quiet."
The above lines. Pure wonderful use of words and place. Made me feel the silence. Thank you for sharing the amazing poetry.
Coyote