SwimSwam presents this poem in recognition of U.S. Masters Swimming’s “Coach Appreciation Week,” May 2-8. (The American Swimming Coaches Association holds a separate “Swimming Coach Appreciation Week” in October.)
Volunteer swim coach: A tribute
by Michael O. Zahn
He walks with two canes,
he’s fragile and fat,the kids on the team
lug his extra-wide chair,
gently help him sit back.
But his voice still has sinew,
he bellows tough drills.
With sandpaper words
he strives to propel
even the slackers,
to make all excel.
Once, long ago,
he was slim and swam swift.
An Adonis in butterfly,
flaunting gods’ gift!
The water was whipped
by his lunges and plunges!
Sprays of ribbons
were showered by judges.
Ribbons fray.
Butterflies die.
Bodies betray.
The gods can deny.
What’s left of Adonis
you’ll find at the pool
in his extra-wide chair,
a pain-drenched old grandpa
who’s fighting despair
by bequeathing his dreams
to the ripening teens
on the high-school swim team.
“Volunteer Swim Coach: A tribute,” is based on a real person. The author, Michael O. Zahn, lives in Central Florida. The poem appears in the current issue of Swimzine, the British literary magazine devoted entirely to swimming. (www.swimzine.co.uk)
ABOUT MICHAEL ZAHN
Michael Zahn, a former Milwaukee newspaper reporter, lives in Poinciana in Central Florida. Born in 1947, he is an unaffiliated member of US Masters Swimming. His poems have been published in numerous swimming media, both print and electronic.