5 July 2026

By Philip Kuepper

Everything the rower saw
he saw with acute clarity:
the beads of water
rolling off the blades
each time he lifted the oars
out of the water;
each cutting of the water by the blades
as he lowered the oars into the water;
the ruffling of water frothing
along the sides of the shell;
the adhering sunbeams reflected
by the water, turning it
from blue to gold;
the clear air the crew was passing through,
the air, a river of oxygen,
the crews’ breathing was leaving a wake on.
He saw himself at the heart
of his rowing.
This was his
epiphany.

(24 June 2026)