thank you liked the use of parenthesis
On 12/20/05, aniruddha dutta <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > The Swim > > > > One moment and > > You've looked past that > > Old grey large building > > And thought out what > > May be that pond beyond, > > > > And calculating distances, feeling > > The irrepressible loneliness > > Of those scattered, floating clouds above – > > > > It takes but another > > (Moment, that is) to consider > > How new or old may be that giddiness; > > As you race and pause and embrace > > Finally, with relief, the release > > That will be all to feel > > Once one's drenched, one's > > Gone under. > > - Aniruddha Dutta > 2005 > > > > I was, in my childhood, an inveterate water-hater, there was once this > (retrospectively hilarious) scene by a swimming pool where the trainer was > trying to persuade me to the deep end while I was persisting in trying to > climb up the wall, a tug-of-war that my undoubtedly well-meaning mother also > joined in but which was seen by me as the gesture of ultimate rejection and > betrayal. > > Since then, the effect of water-shimmering-in-the-afternoon > on me has been mixed: the still languor of the atmosphere, that very old > fear at the pit of my stomach, added with a sense of anticipated thrill that > I only tasted much later, after many failed training sessions. Swimming, in > the closed community of this small town I grew up in, was a competitive > activity entrenched in the process of a collective growing up: most of your > friends (not to mention their parents) knew whether you could swim or not, > just as they knew your rank in class and (if you were a girl) whether you > could dance/sing or not. It was one of the rungs in a proper induction into > both masculinity and femininity: one hallmark of a balanced upbringing for > both boys and girls (balanced between studies and a right dose of > extra-curriculars, that is.) It was not gendered like a lot of other things > were, but still a locus of heavy competition, where rivalries and > friendships mixed in the shared pursuit of growth. But also, it was a rare > space where girls and boys could freely mingle and talk: and for me, that > was doubly beneficial in the way I could chat with girls without > surveillance and the awkwardness of any expected pattern of interaction, and > also surreptitiously and cleverly glance at sleek male bodies climbing out > of the pool. > > It is weird, when one thinks how swimming is an activity of personal freedom > in the sense of an easy and willed movement that can never be moulded or > taught from outside, that it could become so social an activity in our town > the way it did. Isolation and swimming became associated in my mind much > later, when I was in my late teens, and was allowed to go alone to the pool > when not many others would be there. > > > > -- > You are encouraged to post poetry, respond critically to the poems > circulated and participate in discussions. To post, email your message to > ZESTPoets@yahoogroups.com OR post online at > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTPoets/post/ > > > ________________________________ > YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS > > Visit your group "ZESTPoets" on the web. > > To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. > To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. > Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. > ________________________________ > ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Know an art & music fan? Make a donation in their honor this holiday season! http://us.click.yahoo.com/.6dcNC/.VHMAA/Zx0JAA/yqIolB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> -- You are encouraged to post poetry, respond critically to the poems circulated and participate in discussions. To post, email your message to ZESTPoets@yahoogroups.com OR post online at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTPoets/post/ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTPoets/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
