Lost in Summer ~ by Dr. Joel Ying, MD Atlantic waves crashing on the white sand Mid-morning sun already heavy in the sky Fractured shards of light glimmer atop the waves Sea foam like lace hems the shoreline. My nine year old self running into the water Trampling over the delicate froth Leaving the already hot sand of the Florida summer beaches. Splashing with my brother The cool meets my virgin skin; I squeal and explode with laughter, I go all in, under water. Glasses kept on with a strap For the first time, I can see into the water. I try it out, my new eyes No longer left on shore. Clear clean water disappears into Individual grains of sand Moving to the rhythm of the currents. A wave catches me, My feet go up, my head goes under. The band keeping my eyes attached Suddenly separates; My hands flail into the blurry depths. Eyes salted shut, up is down, The cool water undulates and gives back nothing. Waves shift, down is up, Metal grazes against my hand. I grasp at an invisible water snake My fist empty I squint in the blurry sun, diving down, Again and again. Some things you catch once, But you lose twice.
This week, I was inspired to write a poem after attending a poetry reading at Florida Gulf Coast University by Michael Hettich. I loved his lingering concrete images and ending lines that turn the poem into something haunting and universal. During the Q&A after his poetry reading, someone asked about beginnings and endings. Random memories with concrete images started popping into my head. I jotted some of them down.
This moment of losing my glasses at the beach came to me along with the two last lines. The next day in a writing group with some friends, I wrestled with the memory to find the beginning images that would take me through to those lingering last lines: “Some things you catch once, but you lose twice.” I’m still working on the full meaning of those lingering words in the context of my life, but there is something that feels complete about the poem. Taking Michael Hettich’s advice on endings, I decided not to ramble on. There are some things that you must leave to the reader.
After getting my words on paper, I clung onto the advice of another poet at the Q&A: the editing process can be a richly creative experience. Instead of approaching the editing as tedious and laborious (which it can be sometimes), the idea of unleashing more creativity into the writing during the editing phase is an inspiring approach.
Listen and read some of Michael Hettich’s poetry online.
Check out his recent book, The Halo of Bees: New & Selected Poems, 1990-2022.
I LOVE this poem. I love the image of the little boy squealing with delight in the cool waters of the hot sandy beach. I love that he has glasses with a strap so he can see under the water for the first time. I love the image of him getting tossed by the waves…up is down and down is up! And his search for his lost glasses coming up empty handed. “Some things you catch once and lose twice.” Your imagery and descriptive phrases had me with you every line. I was there feeling it all. Delightful and sad.