Where You Placed Your Boat

By Andrew R. Duckworth

I haven’t seen Spring River in nearly a decade.

I didn’t touch the water then-
I allowed it to flow- small rapids
And gentle trickle of fresh water
Over jagged rocks.

You weren’t the kind to go to that
Manmade beach in Hardy.
You put the boat in
Where the water was quick
Like pulsing veins.

That made you different
Where you placed your boat-
The challenge of it,
The adventure of it,
Foregoing the calm for the rowdy.

The rough and tumble of nature
Never struck you with fear,
Not that I could ever see.
You looked upon the beast and said,
“Come and take it.”

This is a poem that I meant to be a part of a collection of poems written while reflecting on my late father. Perhaps it still will be. Dad amazed me with his spirit for adventure, one that I did not share as a child. However, the older I grew, the more I realized that everyone has a need for adventure, a need for facing the odds and overcoming them.