See that pool over there?
Our Greek guide points to a pond
as we crowd in toward the water.
It’s where Narcissus went in!
His voice so authoritative
there’s a muffled gasp
from the tour group. The water
looks enticing – brilliant blue-green,
white water lilies gently lazing.
I move to the front, smile
at the gullibility of the others,
knowing it’s only a myth.
I lift my sunglasses and peer
into the pond, aware my one
drooping eyelid will not be pleasing
to its liquid image. Nor will my facial gash
from the tour bus accident
on the trip here from Istanbul.
No Narcissus to be seen, only his flower
as we speed back to Athens
along Aegean Sea cliffs.
I lean away from the water’s edge,
remembering I can’t swim.