Into the Water

All the sages teach: Answers are in reach
So I went out to repent for ten days at the beach
Standing at the edge, I made a solemn pledge
Swim and pray every day and let the ocean dredge me

Here we go out into the water now
Down in the deep; see what we will see
Here we go out into the water now
Down in the dark with the shells and the starfish
Ready to dive in, I saw a dorsal fin
Wallow through the shallows where I was about to swim
It’s hard to tell apart a dolphin and a shark
From a distance, so I went in for a little heart to heart

With the water to my shins; I received an answer
Slate metal skin; head shaped like a hammer
Let us raise a toast; seven feet away
To what we fear the most; gently come to pray, pray
Moving side by side, with a cautious stride
We endured until he turned and went out with the tide
I came back again, every day in ten
Scanned the coast, raised a toast
And dove in