Deep Into the Lake

A prose poem by Nancy Machlis Rechtman

She trekked through the familiar woods until arriving at the edge of the lake. The

glint of the dying sun pointed the way to the old house that long ago had been home

where she had once sought inspiration and isolation. The trees surrounding the

dilapidated building were frosted with dots of white like the muzzle of her old dog. The

echoes of his howls still swirled around her. The lock on the door had never been fixed, in  

step with all the broken things. She shouldered her way inside through the darkness as the arthritic creak of the hinges welcomed her home. She automatically flipped the impotent light switch despite knowing there was no power. Then she shone her flashlight to navigate the stairs to the attic, the sanctuary where she had spent much of her childhood hiding from the light.

The key to the ancient desk was still stashed under the cracked floorboard by the window. She slowly opened the bottom drawer – it didn’t give way easily. Her fingers grasped the yellowed paper inside filled with undecipherable symbols that her mother had scrawled – frantically – many years ago – just before she got stuck and lost her words. But maybe her mother had always been stuck because nothing had ever made sense. The message had faded, vanishing into the maze of her mother’s fractured mind. What remained was meant to remind her that the only road she could possibly take to find happiness – or at the very least, freedom – lay at the fringe of these woods, even if the path had disappeared along with her mother, deep into the lake.

Hear Nancy read her poem:

Deep Into the LakeNancy Machlis Rechtman

1:47

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Nancy Machlis Rechtman has had poetry and stories published in Writing In A Woman’s Voice, miniMAG, Discretionary Love, Young Ravens, and more. Her poetry, essays, and plays are published in various anthologies. She wrote lifestyle stories for a local newspaper, and she was the copy editor for another paper.

Image: Blue woods by Anna Kutukova