Hugh Hazelton
dreamwaves
engulfedenfolded
on summerbed
breaking southernly
on the nightshore
wind lightly rattling
the blinds
from beyond
the whispering stars
swimming through darkwater
darkdarkdarkdarkdarkwater
frog stroke frog stroke underwater
and then up ever up to filtering curtained afternoon airlight
sidestroking breaststroking crawling
hhhhhhhooooouuuuuuuuuuuu
wwwwwhhhhhooooooouuuuuuu
hhhhhhhooooouuuuuuuuuuuu
wwwwwhhhhhooooooouuuuuuu
across
the softswells of smoothwater
toward the offshore
island
I’d so oftenseen
off to the north
visited on sunspilt
young days with friendsandcousins
by rowboat
but now swimming
water splashing overeyes
sun wavering refracted
through saltdrops
the farthest I’ve everswam
out of the bay
its quietsea
on the outgoing tide
to the cove entrance
where someone is calling
someone who is that someone calling
a voice I know
who is she calling
the woman now or past
from the lastrocks
though no one’s visible
reaching out to me across air and years
was it anothertime
diving again
froglike froglike
deeper into
the waving indistinct
forms of kelpstrands with podheads
feeling them brush against my armslegs
no they’re not wrapping around me
as I used to fear whenachild
I’m just moving through them
like anyfish
yes maybe I can feel their hands though
time to rise for airagain
back to the crystal surface
breathe deeply floating and then
return divingdown
the wrackfaces quavering
calling my name again
why have you left us here
down farther down
down as far as I can go
and still be able
to rise again
why have you abandoned us
we who suffered below
jetisoned our feetandhands chained
into the sargasso seas
listenlistenlistenlisten to us
long sea laments
why was this done to us
airagain airagain airagain
rising the kelp slipping
from along my legs
breathe
backstroking quietly
hills to the left
gesturing to the island
harbour point which I’ve passed
the wind freshening
ocean waves now
seawater drying on my face
and the sun above
through the waterfilm
across my eyes
sun and waterbug backswimmer
like the flat oval insect I found with my sister
scissoring across the depths
the water dark blue now
just being
floating
upon liquid beneath sunair
the crinoids far behind
their fossil stems turned to luckystones
my jellyfish tentacles
propelling forward
toward the rocksand island
where no ambulatory life yet lives
long before legsfeet and lungfish
hopped about in the mud
but covered with hardy plants
grown lush in summer
nothing here needs me
though I need everything around me
humanjelly tentacles sting and wither
whatever they touch
a medusa propelling itself across the seas
and coming ashore to an untrodden garden
with acid arms pumping out neurotoxins
into other lifeforms
tiring
my limbs of stone
Perseus has flown over me
the sun is too hot
turn facedown quiet butterfly
waves calming as the island comes closer
pushing me forward
drifting on them because
I have to have enough force
to get back
the ancient pilings of the old lighthouse pier
rise glistening with algaecovered heads
from the seafloor
covered with fineslime
slippery as the eels that live among
the rocks once thrown down
to hold the structure
collapsed and washed away so long ago
where fishlive now oblivious
to the blind stone eye
of the lighthouse the keeper gone
a century ago coming in now
to the tiny beach flanked by boulders
of a rockscrub island
feet at last touching sand
slipping on rock
here I am
alone amid the sunwaves
breathing deep sodeep
lungdeep now after gills
the first fish to walk the land
lie back relaxing
on the heated sand
as long as you want
waiting for the tide to change
and flow to shore again
before making the tripback
if I can
I’m thirsty really thirsty
musthave swallowed toomuch seawater
did they know I left
did I tell anyone I was going
the voice that was calling to me
to come back to those people
still waiting forever waiting
looking seaward from the point
the cove sofaraway now
I’m tired but best to startsoon
now that the tide is running back
and before the offshore wind comes up
and the sun starts to set
perhaps I can closemyeyes justalittle
justabit quietly won’t sleep can’t miss the tide
just for a fewseconds fewseconds just
the dreamswimmer hesitates
forever coming up for air
on the bed of darkness
with stars turning swirling over water