The Orison Of The Rower

The Orison of the Rower

As he went through
His warm-up
Exercises before his row,
He recited:

I will row with
All that I am.
I will row with
All I encounter,
With the shore,
With my shell, my oars.
I will row with the river,
With the wind I am given,
With the wildlife along my path.

I will row with the horizon,
Whether clear or hazed over.
I will anoint myself with the light.
I will inhale the air
That the air will become
One with my lungs,
One with the beat of my heart,
One with my will to row.

I will myself become
One with the soul of rowing.

Philip Kuepper
(January 2012)