BreastStroke

I went swimming this afternoon,
jumped off the old dock straight into the afternoon’s saltiness,
swam far, a beeline to the horizon,
white arms in green water,
Hands taut, scooping,
feet flexed, thighs molding the water into motion
The rhythm was mesmerizing:
inhale, look forward, see the horizon
stretched out before you in endless shades of the same color,
Exhale, face to the ocean floor,
eyes closed against the fearful depths,
blow the air out as if to mock what lies below.
Its all about defiance:
defy the monsters of the deep with closed eyes,
Defy with the very act of moving forward
the monsters you left behind on land
Defy the endlessness before you
by swimming until you find the end.