A poem for my father: Memory or Dream?

 

In January I had to take a poetry class for part of my requirements for my B.A. in creative writing. Now, writing poetry isn’t really my thing, and reading it, well, it’s not high on the priority list. Every once in a while I find a poem that gets me though and after writing a few silly things that I knew I couldn’t pass in as actual work, I came up with this:

The Green

Rays spread out like the cloak of heaven

it’s soft fibers brush against my legs.

in the undulating motion,

Ffotsam drifts on silent wings.

Now shining in the light,

now hidden in the shadow,

beneath the cool,

beneath the green.

Weightless, I am not scared for I can see you

your dark silhouette against the brightness.

hours do not exist, nor minutes

only moments and all

is calm,

above the cool,

above the green.

I am at peace,

yet peace is broken.

by your grasp, so swift, so strong.

and the nymph gleaming

at the edges turned and flicked

and fled, through the cool,

through the green.

A vivid picture lingers

suspended in my mind

but a picture cannot restore

the tranquillity of  that place,

my soul

among the cool,

among the green.

 

This poem was inspired by my earliest childhood memory–at least, I think it is a memory. My parents had taken me to some kind of park or campground or something, and my dad and I walked down to the water. I remember jumping in and once under the water, opening my eyes to see this wonderful green color and waves of some kind of water weed waving in the current. I remember looking up at my dad standing on the dock. He just looked at me, no panic in his eyes or anything and then, his hand broke the surface of the water and hauled me out. I don’t remember anything after that, but the image of the water, the vivid color and that serene feeling remain.

So, is it memory or dream? What is your first memory?

**UPDATE**

My dad just got to see this post and this is what he wrote to me about it–

“We were at the lake/river in Ann Arbor with Pat, Ray and Wendy; in their boat. Babies and water made me nervous; so didn’t let you out of my sight! I saw you take off and I just let you go, to see what you would do. Sure enough, you RAN to the end of the dock and jumped right in! You didn’t miss a beat, jumped right in!

I was at the end of the dock before you hit the water – I just waited! Then I saw you coming up, your eyes were wide open and you weren’t scared at all! We watched each other and I reached down and just pulled you out. You didn’t cry or seem scared – you were calm and we talked about it for a minute and then we continued the day.

I can still see you coming up through the water, your eyes wide open and locked on me! You didn’t dream it! But, you did have high brain activity to create a great moment.

This moment seems to have set the base line for your creativity!**

So it wasn’t a dream! =0)