They billow like merry meringues, pale and pink,
the plump can feel proud that they never sink.
The skinny don’t mind that their elbows stick out
now they’re sinuous, slippery, sleek as brown trout.
Winding down in the cafe with tea and crunch crinkles
the old folk are feeling relaxed about wrinkles.
The kids can enjoy half-an-hour to postpone
all the pressure they feel to get back on the phone.
Whoever you are you can do as you wish,
pretend you’re a mermaid or tropical fish
or dream up a plan for saving mankind -
with your body adrift you’ll free up your mind.
A watery paradise down here on earth
a swimming pool gives us a kind of rebirth.