Swimming and Writing: Thought for the Day (3)

Friday 23 October 2009

Today - 50x25m lengths in 35 minutes. How about this enigmatic statement:

All good writing is swimming underwater and holding your breath.

F. Scott Fitzgerald

I'll meditate on that tomorrow morning.

This summer I went swimming

This summer I might have drowned

But I held my breath

I kicked my feet

I moved my arms around

This summer I swam in the ocean

And I swam in a swimming pool

Salt my wounds, chlorined my eyes

I'm a self-destructive fool

Self-destructive fool

This summer I did the backstroke

And you know that that's not all

I did the breaststroke, the butterfly

And the old Australian crawl

The old Australian crawl

This summer I swam in a public place

And a reservoir to boot

At the latter I was informal

At the former I wore my suit

I wore my swimming suit

Oh, this summer I did swan dives

And jack knives for you all

And once when you weren't looking

I did a cannon ball

This summer I went swimming

This summer I might have drowned

But I held my breath, I kicked my feet

And moved my arms around

I moved my arms around

Loudon Wainwright III