Night Swims (poem)

I went to the beach recently But by the beach, I mean the bay By recent, I mean July I walk there, shed everything I don't need Stepping into the water, into expanse of thoughtlessness Where no single thing operates me The water is getting deeper And I feel the sand beneath my toes turn to mud And I walk until I can't touch anymore I'm seeking something, but settling for nothing Except to float Night swims A darker summer night, just a silver spoon of moon Cradling navy blue night sky I think of God, and I think of my ex And the two of them rally back and forth for a while Night swims A blanket of top waters, patterned with pure reflections And in the distance The muffled symphony of persons worrying is somehow comforting To know it's not only me So I slip beneath the surface I leave the sand, and I feel the current take me A distant pulsing beat, chatter melts into a mumble For a moment it's simple, for a moment I swear I can feel the world spinning A night swim's what I needed Sometimes the only way to stop thinking, but under the horizon That's when I really start breathing By breathing, I mean feeling everything and nothing simultaneously By simultaneous, I mean miscellaneous The vast variety of unknown swimming to expand the radius Swimming in the craziness, but not becoming it I'm taking night swims away from the lights Because simple is nice And it's changing my mind