Lifebath

Water sprays my hair neck shoulders
And estuaries of hot release
Channel muscles to relaxation.
The day has been long,
The road soiling and tense.
I grasp the gentle reminder
Of rose-scented soap
And begin to scrub
Events delays complaints
Away,
Down,
Into eddies of darkened waters.
The soap falls and, exhausted,
I let it rest where it may.
I drift forward hazily focused
On shampoo, an uneven
Pool of mother pearl
Coating my damp palm.
I am grateful to the oils
Which have lubricated my
Business in the concrete
Labyrinth of professionalism,
But as my fingers pulsate
Along my scalp,
I do not mourn their vacation.
The last vestiges of shadowed sudds
Pass into septic oblivion
Before I awkwardly disconnect
(A dimly recorded flick of wrist)
From this bastion of sanitation.

Staggering closed eyed weakly warm
Toward freshly scented absorbant blue,
I thank my shower.
It’s a good, satisfying shower
After all...
But I sleepily acknowledge
It is the sea of life
You carry within
In which I truly
Care to bathe....