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Open Poetry #42
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April Version 2008
| Open Poetry #42 |
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April Version 2008 |
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Jaime Fradera Senior Member
since 2000-11-25
Posts 843Where no tyranny is tolerable |
This is one I tweak every 2 or 3 years and this modification is for 2008. April 1: It is afternoon, And for some reason I am feeling festive. I feel the distant heat Of a Sun low in the sky. I am wading in a shallow pool Of blood-warm seawater. I feel the stiff and strong sea breeze on my face. I smell the raw, organic scent of Birth and Death. I feel the shifting crumbling sand Between my toes, Beneath my feet, The sandy bottom shaking, Rumbling, With the elemental thunder, Of the sea. It vaguely dawns on me Why I am there .. Why I don't want to be there, That eventually I will encounter April, That I know what she will want, What I will have to do, Dive into the water While turning inside out, And if I try something like that I will surely drown. As I splash and play delightedly, I find thick and mushy bubble-blobbs Suspended in the water. They smell sweet, like fudge, Feel like warm quivering Jell-O, Or like candy that has not yet set. But I don't think it's safe to eat them Since I don't know what they are. They might be dangerous or nasty, Like jellyfish. Still, I am fascinated by them! They are strange and beautiful. What are they? ... Where are they coming from? I decide to find out. I look for more of them. I walk around, Running my hands, Combing my fingers through the water. Suddenly I stumble Over a great enormous bubble, So thick, so fleshy That I can not run my fingers through it, So wide I can not even reach across it. And it seems richer Than all the other candy bubbles In the water. 2: Are you ready? I am startled. It is April. And The bottom caves alarmingly. And the waves Seem a little higher, And the water Feels a little deeper. Are you ready? Is that annoyance, Irritation in her voice? I briefly think What it would be like to hold her, But she is imposing, demanding and severe; She wouldn't understand it anyway. I dismiss the thought at once. Are you ready? I have to get away from there. If I could only find the shallows ... The shallows? ... Then I realize That I don't know where I am. I don't even know Which way will take me out, And the bottom shudders, crumbles, As if to make me fall into the water, And I am very frightened. I am going to drown. Are you ready? That snarling, monstrous ***** ... Is she sneering at me? I'm know I'm going to drown ... I'm going to ... ... In raw, primeval terror, Flailing my arms wildly, About to lose my balance, I try running frantically Through the roiling chest deep water, Stumbling off in one direction, Then off in another; But I just blunder Into even deeper water. I'm going to drown ... I'm going to ... ... I ... I ... I'm ... I ...I ... My heart races uncontrollably, My breath coming in gasps. NO! ... ... No!! ... ... NO!!! ... NNNNNNNNN ... Are you ready? Suddenly the bottom is gone And I pitch forward. I know I'm going to drown. I have no choice But to dive into the water And start turning inside out. Then I realize That I forgot to breathe before the dive, And I get stuck in the maneuver. I can't complete the task, my arms and legs are tangled, And now I'm out of air, And my terror turns to panic. I'm going to drown ... The most terrifying death I can imagine. And Time and Space Have lost all meaning ... Reflexively I gulp in brackish sea water, Choking and gagging, Kicking and thrashing. 3: Then April reaches out. She takes my hands. She pulls me from the water. She takes me in her outstretched arms. And in the moment that she takes my life, She gives to me her own. It's okay ... It's okay ... It's okay ... It's okay ... Be still ... Be still ... Be still ... Be still ... Jaime |
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Margherita Member Seraphic
since 2003-02-08
Posts 22236Eternity |
This is such a powerful write, dear Jaime! I almost drowned with you ... and ahhh the final rescue was very sweet! Love, Margherita  |
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Alison 
since 2008-01-27
Posts 9318Lumpy oatmeal makes me crazy! |
Jaime, Your ability to describe sometimes leaves me speechless. Is it trite to say "Wow!"? I do say that and hope that you understand. Alison |
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Sunshine
Administrator
Member Empyrean
since 1999-06-25
Posts 63354Listening to every heart |
Tweak away, our friend. Every poet is allowed to tweak, as did all of the ones of renown!  |
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Pilgrimage Member Elite
since 2001-12-04
Posts 3945Texas, USA |
Oh my goodness. At first I was happily splashing away, and then the drama and the panic hit. Then the peace. I was with you all the way in this one. Nan (Pilgrim variety) |
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