Nutcracker

Bathing in the Frigid Atlantic

By: Charles Giuliano - Sep 09, 2015

Nutcracker

No swans by
Annisquam River
Less like
Nutcracker the ballet than
Scrotum scrunching
Ballsbuster
Last swim
Brisk August plunge
Summer visit
Steps from the Inn
To rocky
Camrbridge Beach
Picking my way
Cautiously
Tender bare feet
Looking for sand
Avoiding sharp rocks
Wading in
Shivering mightily
Convulsed with cold
Warmest water of summer
The locals say
Brisk Atlantic
No mercy for bathers
Up to my waist
Johnson shriveled like
Ipswich fried clams
Wrists plunged in
Cools the blood
Adjustment for
Final plunge
Shock and awe
Merged with nature
Back where we emerged
When fish flipped onto land
Evolving to breathe
Emerged refreshed
Packed for ride home
Now harvest time