I Asked my Shadow to Swim
I asked my shadow to swim on the surface.
I didn’t want it to sink in fear,
from the ripples pulling it down,
fading into gray below.
I asked the silence to hold a chord
until it could resonate.
I wanted echoes to break through
the empty spaces where sound had once lived.
I asked the silence to sing.
I asked the stillness to move without breaking.
I wanted to discover the quiet sound of heartbeats
that I couldn’t hear; that silence stopped me hearing.
I asked the stillness to let me hear
what I missed...
I asked the wind to linger long enough,
to show me how to touch softly,
like a gentle breath against skin.
I wanted a gesture of grace,
that was barely felt, but so loud profound.
I asked the wind to linger within ...
I asked my shadow to swim
I asked the silence to sing
I asked the wind to linger within
I asked the mirror to stop insisting
that the past should drown the present.
I wanted it to see out,
and through, not just reflect.
I asked the mirror to see ...
I asked gravity to loosen its grip
that pulls all dreams and leaps
back down, to the ground,
so I could fly freely skyward.
I asked the earth to let me fly, let me fly ...
You can’t force a shadow, a silence, a mirror, or a wind
to soften their stance with just one demand.
You must sit beside them, wait, feel, listen.
You have to plead with open hands,
searching for the crack where
light begins to seep in,
making darkness disappear,
so they will yield
and become consciously aware, and there
within me ... within me ...
I asked my shadow to swim
I asked the silence to sing
I asked the wind to linger within
I asked the mirror to see
I asked the earth to let me fly
I asked my shadow to let the light in ....
To let the light in, within me ...
Copyright ©
John Anderson
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