The First Immersion Changes Everything

Every river has its flow
whether a stream through a meadow
or a raging torrent rushing beneath cliffs
cascading into the depths of the Earth
even so each river changes perpetually
from the riverbank watching the eddies 
swirl we know that into this flow
we cannot wade twice cannot know
again the exact same water or feel
washing over us the same experience
not only because the river is changing
not only because we ourselves are changing
but also because the first immersion
changes everything

When we wade into the river twice
we carry with us that first wetness
we seek a repetition of the chill
the swimming upriver the thrill
of being at one with the stream flowing
ourselves not only in the present river
but in our memory of our first swim
there our first embrace of this water
the river is our own life preserving
an identity however illusory of life
of an enduring self of permanence
always moving downstream 
every embrace becomes a recollection
every kiss an accumulation