IF I COULD CHOOSE
H. W. Bryce
If I could choose, I’d swim with whales.
It must be so peaceful down there,
At the bottom of the sea.
It must be like touching eternity,
A place of perpetual peace.
It must be the place for me.
Oh, I might have to come up for air,
But the pull of the idylic would pull me back.
Oh, to swim with whales, to be so graceful,
To be so large that no one attacks you,
This would be bliss – away from Earthlings’
Petty slings and arrows; to be in so close-knit
A group would be divine. To feel that I
Would belong would comfort me, free me
To be the me I want to be. To be pulled
Along (as if important would be important
To me. And that that would not matter
but that it would count).
Yes. If I could choose, I would swim with whales.
A whale would never bail on his pod. He
Would never fight with God; he would never pick
On prawns; this gentle leviathon, content to be
Where his spirit never pales.
–like the bliss of a kiss, we’d cruise along with ease,
An example of community seldom seen above water,
Not bothered by the ill winds.
Ah, the sea, the reflection of the sky,
Tranquil under the storms raging above,
Doing no harm, just swimming, just to be,
Family first, togetherness always. Each
Member belonging, each doing his part,
Such as it ought to be, while still being free.
We would cruise with the tide, no need to hide.
I would feel like the groom escorting his bride;
I would be the little child, happy-go–lucky and free,
No responsibility, having to pay no fee.
And yet, being part of a pod would be such pride
The free ride would prompt me to give favours
Like a lottery winner doling out free dollars.
I would want to heal, if I could live with whales.
To be in such a space, I could never lose.
Yes, I’d swim with whales if I could choose.
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