a small boat

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Billy
Posts: 1384
Joined: 22 Jun 2006, 10:56

a small boat

#1 Post by Billy » 19 Oct 2018, 05:45

a small boat

i like the sound of water
when sitting in a boat
a small boat with oars

row out to the center
of a pond or lake
or 20 to 30 feet

from the bank
of a secluded cove
where you can

hear fish surface
watch snake doctors
skim the water

see a heron
up to his knees
minding his own business

searching like a limnologist
to gather specimens
from the littoral zone

and down deep
in the benthic zone
lie the legends

the old-timers
with knowledge of the seasons
and the goings-on

that come from experience
scars left by hooks
and snapping turtles

a wisdom not found
under a microscope
though a drop of water

was the beginning
of a boat and of a world
that’s never dry

hear and feel
the pristine splash
the easy rock of now

BobBradshaw
Posts: 2683
Joined: 03 Jun 2016, 21:03

Re: a small boat

#2 Post by BobBradshaw » 19 Oct 2018, 09:15

A terrific poem, Billy. I enjoy the feel of wisdom and myth telling that ends in that great close.... a sense of timelessness exists here with its layers of lives--all interacting and dependent on the worlds to which they themselves contribute....the casualness and simplicity used to depict this environment are striking.... kudos

great close:

refreshed and awakened
the dead
hear and feel
the pristine splash
the easy rock of now

These are my favorite lines:

see a heron
up to his knees
minding his own business
searching like a limnologist
to gather specimens
from the littoral zone
and down deep
in the benthic zone
lie the legends
the old-timers
with knowledge of the seasons
and the goings-on
that come from experience
scars left by hooks
and snapping turtles

IndianaDP
Posts: 181
Joined: 24 Mar 2018, 16:53

Re: a small boat

#3 Post by IndianaDP » 19 Oct 2018, 17:55

Billy, good to see you here, I just figured out who you are.

This poem resonates with me, one of my favorite places is to be alone in a small boat, on a small lake, waves slapping under the bow. It is very meditative, a time to get lost in your thoughts.
I have never heard if snake doctors, I will have to look that one up.

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Billy
Posts: 1384
Joined: 22 Jun 2006, 10:56

Re: a small boat

#4 Post by Billy » 19 Oct 2018, 20:53

Thanks Bob and Dale

a snake doctor is a dragonfly
that appellation derives from a southern myth or legend that dragonflies heal snakes when they get cut or lacerated

Michael (MV)
Posts: 2154
Joined: 18 Apr 2005, 04:57

Re: a small boat

#5 Post by Michael (MV) » 20 Oct 2018, 08:51

 
Hi Bily,


w/ out "no motor"

I like the sound of water
when sitting in a boat
a small boat with oars

row out to the center
of a pond or lake
or 20 or 30 feet


or maybe

I like the sound of water
when sitting in a boat
a small boat with oars
(no roar)
row out to the center
of a pond or lake
or 20 or 30 feet




8)

Michael (MV)

 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 

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Billy
Posts: 1384
Joined: 22 Jun 2006, 10:56

Re: a small boat

#6 Post by Billy » 22 Oct 2018, 00:12

Thanks Michael, I understand your suggestion and am thinking on it. Yes, it's sort of implied that there is no motor, but I sort of want to emphasize that.

Kenneth2816
Posts: 1619
Joined: 01 Jun 2008, 09:17

Re: a small boat

#7 Post by Kenneth2816 » 26 Oct 2018, 16:16

I work on a lake. It's not small, though has many coves. This resonates with me. Ever hear of Lake Toxaway?

User avatar
Billy
Posts: 1384
Joined: 22 Jun 2006, 10:56

Re: a small boat

#8 Post by Billy » 26 Oct 2018, 20:18

Thanks Kenneth

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