Night Swim

The blade of my paddle dips in and out of the placid water. Ripples swim across the surface of
the lake. Blue green gratitude awakens through my heart center as this sun drenched oasis holds
me so completely, so tenderly. Tendrils of my attention, stream like sunbeams, dipping under the
surface to explore life beyond the lily pads to the fish hidden in the reeds, nibbling on morsels of
aquatic delight.

The blade of my paddle cuts through the barrier between our world and theirs. How privileged I
feel for this window into their world. If I wanted, I could plunge my whole body into their
delicately balanced ecosystem–A natural disaster in the making. But, I couldn’t join their world.
Poking one toe through would be best. Let the fish come to me, observe me, attempt a nibble at a
manageable piece of me. That requires my awareness, and I’m not always swimming with
curiosity. I forget there’s an entire habitat underwater. I only know that my skin is simmering and
there’s relief in cold water. I plunge in not thinking about startling the fish. I plunge in away from
the lily pads, at least. There, I won’t be tickled by slimy lake weeds or lacerated by thoughtless
reeds.

We walk so seamlessly through life, effortlessly balancing a world of expectations and
considerations. Hopefully we don’t forsake the curiosity we began with. What intricate scales
this world with all its manifestations registers! And what of the scales of the fish, its suit of
armor that protects and propels with similar ease? Only a truly discerning human can gaze
beyond their board or boat to see their paddle’s edge penetrate the glassy illusion, revealing a
separate truth beneath the surface.

I wonder about the heat tonight and this cool lake waiting down over the hill, holding space for
visitors and permanent residents alike…fat blue dragonflies, rainbow patterned trout, shiny
minnows that glimmer in their moonlit flash mobs, lotus flowers still to come, unfurling in the
daydreams of bullfrogs and horned toads. I wonder about stealing away to waters edge in the
night, of slipping into the black lake like a seal to the beckoning ocean, leaving land when it’s
too unbearable not to return, not to submerge itself in the salty coldness of home.

Swimming in the night, we are equal. We risk ourselves yet move with caution, floating on
trust–Trust in self, in coexistence, in positive intentions, in buoyancy. What if we always moved
through life this way? Would the absence of knowing become cumbersome? Would the thrill
dissipate? Surely not every night would hold enough heat to kindle the coals of forbidden desire
and inspire a night swim.

Tonight, I will meander down the hill and slip into the water, feeling into the refreshing cold,
floating and eyeing the black and white sky. Here, I will listen to the rhythm of my own heartbeat
with the sense of wonder I learned from observing everything else.