I went to the side of the pool, “The old lady side”
Where you wade in the water and swallow your pride
My joints have been swelling more and more
Pounding my feet pads on concrete floor
Time to let the water swallow my back and relax,
To the “Old Lady Side”
Where you can float at will and walk in the shallow end
Stretch out and see what direction you bend
The first thing I noticed as I stretched into a relaxed crawl
Was dappled sun from the windows on the smooth pool floor
Despite the long black lines ending in neat little “T”s
I could imagine myself snorkeling on my favorite Maui shore
Sunlight dripping over my legs and arms
I can see why the old ladies like this side
It’s a little Florida in a Virginia indoor pool
As my aches soaked away I became immensely grateful
For my slow-moving companion in the next lane
No competition entered my head
The week before last I’d gotten up to 100 laps
Then last week my body gave in to lack of exercise
And the incessant pounding of the concrete floor
I entered the whirlpool
And let the swirl move around my aching joints
Relaxing into my new old lady side
