I wrote this poem in my head yesterday while watching my daughter jump off the diving board for the first time.
I realize in retrospect it is actually a poem about going back to school.
My daughter at the edge of the diving board
points not straight ahead, nor toward the closest wall
but directly at me, like an arrow, a pointed finger
my position clearly marked in her mind: you are here.
She dives.
Her world is consumed by the jump, the splash,
her swim to the wall to begin it all again.
I am pinned to the freefall itself
caught in the eternal split second
when she is airborne, fully beyond my grasp.
13 comments:
I like it, last stanza in particular, of course.
Slick redesign.
love the new blog - I can figure out how to leave a comment now!
the poem is gorgeous. I love poems of simple words with overpowering emotion. you nailed it.
Very appropriate.
I guess there is lots of back to school angst in the air.
I love the way she is pointed to you..strong image.
good stuff.
First off, I love the redesign.
Second, the strong image of the daughter pointing at you is very effective.
Usually I am a proponent of the shorter poems, but I can see this being extended into something longer and meditative.
I like it.
That is beautiful. And you told me you get psyched with back-to-school. I detect angst. ;-)
Love the new design!
The last line really cinched it, gave me one of those bittersweet heart-pangs. And I love that this bubbled up while watching your daughter take her leap.
I like the new layout...one of those clandestine black holes could hide out here :O
I am SO there.
Those moments of letting go and letting them take their own steps can be heart stopping.
She sounds like a brave girl; ready to take off and explore the unknown. Good!!
Love the new pic at the top of the blog, and the new clock.
Fixing it up around here? Nice!
Scarlett & Viaggiatore
Powerful stuff, old bean. It's nice to hear from another male blogger with girl children who doesn't mind opening up and sharing some of that papa-angst. Makes me feel more normal. *wide grin*
Thanks, E. I don't love the redesign, don't know why. Too black? Anyway, I'm giving myself time to get used to it.
Maggie, it was a pretty emotional moment. Simple words describe it best.
Meno, there's alotta that going around. Except for Em's roommate's Dad, apparently. Shameful. Maybe that's why she's desperate to find a boyfriend.
Thanks, Paula. Her pointed straight to me was the germ of the poem. Everything else is just filler. Now go back to watching tennis!
D'ancy, to be fair, I didn't know it was about back-to-school until the day after I wrote it. I plead denial. Chipper on the outside, dying within.
Jo,you've guessed my secret. The black backgound is there to hide my army of primordial black holes. Soon the world will be mine! (Insert evil laugh here.)
Mona, we're all there, judging by this week's posts. Sigh.
Scarlett, she vacillates wildly between fearful and courageous. As do I. And everybody else. How's the convention treating you?
Irr, you'll never be normal. Luckily, neither will I.
Amazing how much a short few seconds of real life time can translate through such few words into something really quite immense for you that is likely of huge import. Your growth is parallel, yours in a responsive way, yet she is coming at you and actually surpassing you..scary stuff.
Reminds me of that famous space line, so fitting for YOU (!)
"One small step..."
This one small dive actually could represent enormous growth to come...
Neat!
Thanks for stopping by my cabins!!!
Thanks for your positive vibes! I'll need all the +ve energy from the universe I can gather to help me through and the stay at the cabins did a lot of that...there's an amazing rock face cliff we canoed by and could see every day plus all those stars just hanging down in front of us we could touch at night.
I am an elementary teacher who has been on a leave for the last 2 years actually so yeah, I've got time off.
I'll keep people posted. Literally!
Thanks.
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