The River Bend

-The River Bend-
by Keaton Foster



Back
When I was ten
Just a kid
I use to walk a path
The river bend
Every day
And each night
On my way
To school
On my way back
To my broken home
I could tell you
Each stone
Every broken branch
The number of right turns
And left
The amount of steps
That it would take
To get me where
It was leading me
And to return
The path was long
Grueling at times
Pristine at others
It was close to the water
Often running right at the edge
Of the swirling blackness
Of an unforgiving river
Many of boys and girls
Some older
Some quite younger than I
Have died in that terrible river
It is ten stories deep
And below its smooth top
There is a turbulent vortex
Of gripping currents
There are some old trees
Hiding down in the depths
Way down into the blackness
Just waiting to ensnare anything
Or anyone who gets close
I was always afraid
As I walked along the river bend
I was always concerned that I
A rather awkward and clumsy child
Could someday fall in
Be swept away and drowned
Taken down into the blackness
Never to be returned
Over and over again
In my hypersensitive head
I would contemplates such things
I would think of how it would feel
To die in such a terrible way
I would ponder if Heaven would have me
And what would I say to God above
I would speculate my parent’s feelings
Would they truly miss me
Or would they somehow be glad
Would they say that I was a fool
To have ever been there
And thus got what I deserved
Would they care more in death
Than they ever did for me in life
For many years I walked that path
Thinking, broadening, careful introspection
All became part of my survival mechanism
Many crude ideas were created
There along the shore
Of certain death and destination
I have since given birth to some
But there are far many more that remain
In a constant state of gestation
The river bend
Taught me more than most
More than I could have wished
I have been back since
Walked along that same path
It is well worn
No doubt there are others
Both past and present
That continue to share
In such a journey…


The River Bend
Written by Keaton Foster Copyright © 2014.