Swimming Lesson by Arlene Geller (ALL ABOUT MY MOTHER Series)

Swimming Lesson
by Arlene Geller

I jump into the pool, hoping to show off
my dog-paddling skills to my mom
lounging at the side of the pool

I surface, slick my hair back
and suddenly, I’m submerged again,
by a red and white polka-dotted derriere

I sink and struggle
the white tile base so close
I can touch it. Time stops.
I wonder if I’m drowning.
Would anyone miss me?

Where is Mom?
reading Good Housekeeping?
chatting with other vacationers?
she was not looking at me

          She was not going to save me

Finally, the girl lifts off and I rise
sputtering, I skim the surface
in slow motion,
I grip the pool’s edge
hoist myself up and out

I hurry
to Mom’s chaise lounge
I shake myself off and drip on her,
she squints up at me and,
with a hint of recognition, says,

          Well, it looked like you were having fun!

PHOTO: Swimming pool ring by Public Domain Photos.

NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: I had a difficult relationship with my mother, so I decided to combine this with my family’s wonderful annual two-week vacation when we escaped the city to Lake George, New York. But even that turned out to be fraught with danger on this particular occasion. It has always been amazing to me that someone could be absent in your presence. I am currently working on poems of forgiveness.

PHOTO: The author as a baby with her mother (Jersey City, New Jersey, 1953).

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Poet/lyricist Arlene Geller has been fascinated with words from a young age. Two poetry collections, The Earth Claims Her and Hear Her Voice, were published in 2023 by Plan B Press and Kelsay Books, respectively. Her poetry has also appeared in Tiny Seed Journal, Tiferet Journal, The Jewish Writing Project, White Enso, and other literary journals and anthologies. Collaborations with composers include commissioned lyrics, such as River Song, featured in the world premiere of I Rise: Women in Song at Lehigh University and since performed in numerous national and international locations. Visit her at arlenegeller.com.