"I Grew Up By the Ocean"
by Lani Hankins
I grew up by the ocean
The sea was my greatest teacher
From the first time I saw the water
I knew it would be impossible
To keep me away
At night you cannot see her
Except for the lights that glimmer
From the shore
But the waves
Every breath she takes
Reminds you that she's there
It was the sea that taught me
I could get knocked down
My addiction to riding upon her peaks
Always got me to find a way back up
No matter how hard she was on me
I would always find my way back to her
I feared her
Respected her power
Her vastness
The moment I stepped foot into the water
She would wash away the pain
Cleanse me of my anxieties
Upon the sea
Nothing else mattered
Out on the water
I left the problems of the world
Behind
Lani Hankins is a former Army female engagement team member and a veteran of Afghanistan. Follow her here. Listen to the Savage Wonder episode with her here.
She blogs and podcasts at Kruse Corner.
Bunny: Poems About Surviving Military Life by Lani Hankins
Bottled Away: Confessions of a Struggling Veteran by Lani Hankins
The Gaslit Heart: A Story of Service and Survival by Lani Hankins
Eased Pain: Poems About Surviving Domestic Violence by Lani Hankins
What’s happening at VetRep…
The Parlor is back! This coming Saturday will be the first showing of “The Absurdity of it All” by Chris Soucy, a VetRep Resident Artist. Chris is an Army veteran, co-founder of Odd Lot Improv and the Savannah Shakes Theater Company, and has worked as an actor, puppeteer, writer, director, and filmmaker, with over 30 years of experience in the theater industry. We are thrilled to produce “The Absurdity of it All”, as the first full-length play written for VetRep by a Resident Artist, promising a truly unique performance you can’t get anywhere else. Get your tickets before they sell out!
We would also like to extend our gratitude to Arts Mid Hudson for awarding VetRep the Dutchess programmatic grant in support of this production.
This project is made possible with funds from the Statewide Community Regrants Program, a regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature and administered by Arts Mid-Hudson.