The River Poem by Jose F Rosado

She sits by the river
With her toes breaking the water
And she wonders at the current
And the paths where it may lead her
And she prays that it will take her
If she had the will to dive in
But she fears it may be deeper
Than the thoughts that seem to drive her
And she feels a certain sadness
That she hasn’t jumped in sooner
And she feels a certain panic
That perhaps she will not jump in
That the river will keep going
Past her toes that break the water
And the current will keep flowing
Past the reaches and the prospects of her life

She stares down at the water
Carrying leaves and twigs and branches
Carrying dreams and hopes and wishes
Round the bend and past the island
Disappearing from her vision
But engraved like grooves on granite
In the wishful, longing visions of her mind.
And she knows that life awaits her
And she knows that she must summon
All the will that has escaped her
All the strength that she possesses
She must slip into the water
And the current it must take her
Or it just may keep on flowing
Past the reaches and the wishes of her life

And she knows that it is fated
And with strength and will and panic
She leans out above the river
And she lets her weight just pull her
And she plunges in the water
And she feels the current take her
Like the hands and arms and bosom
Of a kind and caring mother
And she lets the river guide her
Like her father always sought to
And she looks back at the shoreline
Where her childhood and her safety
Stretch their arms as if to reach her
And she knows that they’re just memories
That her life is down the river
And she lets the current take her
And she feels the strength inside her
And the river it keeps flowing
Toward the reaches and adventures of her life


(January 2009)
To my daughter C. going off to college. Good luck - you'll always be my Sweetiepie.