Man at Sea

Sometimes it’s like
the first time snorkeling,
understanding how women think.
For I am merely man
woeful in understanding;
I am simply submerged male
in female ocean
barely buoyant as
a pod of dolphins passing
nods with sincere grins,
as if they read my mind,
as if they understand my
mammalian dilemma.
Oft times I thought
the boat was moving fast,
yet I had time to swim
to gulp fresh air
through narrow pipe,
and reason would achieve
new life like lungs so bathed
by precious air.  Still, time
would be a constant, and eight
AM Saturday to Monday
would not be three days
as per her count.
Oh what do I know?
Underwater
blowing bubbles
with each breath,
evading sharp coral
and manta rays and
logic found at greater depths.
Sometime there was
no time to think
when waves arrived
to toss me so--a swim,
much splash, a man at sea
yet in my mind I came to
know that it was harder
than it looked.


40 Lines
Writer’s Cramp Winner
4-6-16
______

Requirements:
--first time snorkeling
--a pod of dolphins
--the boat was moving fast
--there was no time to think
--it was harder than it looked