The Swimmer

Friction – Chapter Ten.

You are walking; others are running
You were running too.
You remember that very well.

An endless structured path.
Nonsense to you.
An avalanche of confusing rules.
That takes you.

Toi tu t’en fous.(you don’t care)The snow in its passage ruins you
A tiring existence.
A meaningless survival.

You know you have to run away.
Mais toi, tu es insensé(But you’re foolish)exhausted,
You walk.
You go on.

And then, you dive in.

Deserted sea, interminable Blue.
You don’t know how to swim,
yet you jumped anyway.

Tu ne peux pas marcher dans l’eau. (You can’t walk in water)Tu te demandes si tu es fou. (You wonder if you’re crazy)
Madness is eating you.

Disoriented instincts.
Is it stupidity?
Spontaneity?
Or your soul knows the reason.

Lying to yourself,
as always.

You instinctively move,
try to swim,
no fancy capabilities.

With no facility,
tu essaies de flotter.(You try to float)To stay alive.
To go on.

Fishers are mocking you.
Dolphins are racing you.

And you just want to survive,
You drink salt water
It tastes like a marvel.

Eagles are cheering.
The seagulls are feeding you,
throwing vitality.

Ça a l’air de te faire survivre.( It seems to keep you stay alive)Because you go on.

Pas d’île en vue.(No island in sight)No aim in view.
Aucun havre ne t’attend.

You manage to breathe,
to swim.
Your body is tired,
yet you go on.

And then you know,
you want to be a swimmer.

*Un nageur qui défie
Les créatures marines.* ( A swimmer who competes against sea creatures.)

A swimmer with absurd moves,
In unknown – water.

There is no happy ending for you,
no ending in view. (in view)

Yet.

Tu atteins tes limites.(You reached your limits)Ton souffle t’étrangle.(You have no breath left)Ta vitalité s’est évaporée.(Your vitality has evaporated)

*Tu essaies d’être un héros,
de surnager.* (You try to be a hero, to swim)

You try to go on.

I don’t think you can go on.
I think you should have stayed ashore.
I think you are dying.

But you —
you are asking me:

“Am I a swimmer?”