Member-only story
FROM NOTHING, A RIVER OF HAIR
Image Swimming is a term I invented for a series of literary meditations inspired by visual work — in this case, the work of Deborah Koff Chapin, creator of Soulcards. This image is from Deck 1. Please visit https://touchdrawing.com/ for more on this transformative process.
There was a woman walking home from work.
She wore a turban and held her head high.
As we passed each other, we nodded.
But when I reached my corner
something made me turn around
and nothing’s been the same since.
She looked at me directly,
lifted the turban off her head
and showed me the spacious emptiness there
before pouring out her river of hair,
every strand whispering my name
in its own color and texture
in its own way.
Ever since,
I’ve been lighter in my own skin,
less tied to the details of the day.
I’ve noticed how everything issues
from its own opposite
and there is no solid ground
to be had
under any idea.
