An old photograph
His empty net caressing naked genitals,
the diver looks with narrowed gaze
into the sun, the lens.
In seconds he will cross himself
and with the stone to draw him down
descend into an element
unknown to women, cruel to men.
Other divers understand what he
cannot express: the agony of lungs
on fire, the fierce orgasm of desire…
Slippery with sponges that weigh
light against his loins, tugging the signal-
line the youth will rise, to plunge again…
But there beneath the surface lurks
that other world, the fathomless,
the rapture of the deep, and sudden death.
Note: The population of the Aegean island
of Kalymnos was, until the early 1950s,
supported almost solely by its sponge-divers,
who did not enjoy the benefits of modern
equipment. Many perished at an early age.
Kalymnian Sponge-Diver
© Copyright: Jena Woodhouse, 2003
Свидетельство о публикации №103042200777
Свидетельство о публикации №103042200777
Рецензии
Thank you for the affirmation. The image that inspired the poem evoked a sense of the noble, the erotic, the tragic. Now the sponge-divers are just a legend - something the islanders sing about in the harbour cafes of Kalymnos on long winter evenings.
Jena Woodhouse 24.04.2003 11:18 Заявить о нарушении
Jena Woodhouse 24.04.2003 11:18 Заявить о нарушении