AUGUST 22nd
This is a day to sit in the river,
a warm, late summer day,
the light hanging in trees,
a light of distance magnifying detail.
This is a day when the river is clear and shallow,
no ooze,
stones and grit a solid bed.
This is a day for newts to nose thighs,
to lie back,
streamer hair like fronds.
This is a day to bathe in memory
swim in childhood,
for swallows to gather,
for loosestrife to uncurl.
Jeremy Duffield