Archive of New Mexico Poetry – Sandra Wheeler

Seen as if from underwater

Remember first the pool
at the end of class. The thick, acidic
smell of chlorine; the slap
of wet feet hurrying; the girls’
high voices that reverberate
from concrete and tile,
echo, fade. The air fills
with radiant strands of water
that splice and fuse and fray
along walls, along the ceiling. Then
the open shower stalls; all dark
gray concrete; warm air heavy
with steam; the hum
of dryer nozzles; impatient voices calling for a comb, a turn at the dryers.
Finally, the bleachers in the balcony overlooking the pool: girls in
white blouses and full skirts file in, some clutching notebooks
to their chests, some adjusting
nylons, smoothing hair, to wait
for the bell to ring. A refrain, sung
in close harmony: Here she is, Miss
A-MER-i-ca. As they sing, the two
pool monitors step behind
one tall, stoop-shouldered girl, take her by the elbows and usher her out
in front of the bleachers. Here
she is, Miss A-MER-i-ca. They leave
her standing there. She blinks, pauses, climbs into the bleachers. She joins
the laughter as if dazed, slower
than her audience
to get the joke. From all
sides, lacings of water flow over
the young, laughing faces.

About the Poet
Sandra Wheeler has worked as an art teacher in the public schools and as an art director for an advertising agency and for a business magazine. She is now a high school English teacher with a Master’s degree in ESL. “Seen as if from underwater” was published in The Drunken Boat in the summer issue, currently online at http://www.thedrunkenboat.com