21st September 2008 Gurnal Dubs
Richard writes:
Blue sky, sun, warmth, a hint of early mist – the day is a cocktail of high summer and early autumn – six of us swimming the length of the tarn – a jaunty flotilla – talking and feeling oh-so-fantastic, forgetting the earlier concerns of the day – we turn and do some back stroke gazing at the sky – looking back down the tarn and seeing the crowd of people on the shore as if they are an audience in an open air theatre – but then this is a performance of ‘swimming home’ after all – who the audience, who the actors? – the actors viewing the audience as if they were their unconscious? – strange inversion – but then altered states are commonplace here– we arrive at the far end and start to swim back – we are joined by a swimmer I don’t recognise and without my glasses he looks vaguely like Roger Deakin, the inspiration for our project who died a few years ago – his swimming ghost? – do ghosts swim? – altered states? – too many questions? – time standing still yet passing so quickly because all at once we are almost at the shore and everyone is there with open arms to welcome us home – Paul and I swim into the shore together – scramble out – evolution recapitulated; the prodigal’s home-coming re-enacted; actors and audience, conscious and unconscious reunited – the pile-up of connections is unsustainable because what is actually happening is that champagne corks are popping and the atmosphere is charged with celebration and warmth – we are all swimming in the enlarged day – it is the end of the water.
