We already know that poetry and swimming are two pleasure-generating machines. Both practices require discipline to perform them (almost like everything good). Discipline is sometimes seen as punishment, but it is not, it is the part of blood that must be given to be able to touch the depth of things. It does not mean to suffer, but to dedicate time to what will give you pleasure. 

   Reading, writing, swimming. It is a small reflection to enter into the poems of Héctor Viel Temperley. He was a poet and a swimmer. His poetry was crossed by swimming, water, eroticism. I speak of him because I would like to propose some entries on the relationship between writing and desire. More focused on poetry and desire.

   Desire in Temperley's work is embraced by the mystical. It is a way of mystical and profound eroticism. Water is a touchable body that caresses us, the elements relate to the body in a loving and sexual way. Even God is kissed by a swimming man in one of Temperley's poems. Which suggests homoeroticism, if we think that God could be a male being. 

Let's look at a few examples:

   We notice the celebration of the erotic in the poem “Copula” and in “Antiquity”: “turn off your cold and light your sands”. In “Copula” the communion is evident, as we have already seen, with the plural: “united us”, “our bodies” “we broke into dance”, “our breasts”, “our bodies”, “our mouth”: the mouth is one, but it is shared, it is a kiss.

   The poet feels the blow of God, but not inside the church, but in a square, as the Koira writing that studies his work says. In the poem “I saw a ball”, our swimmer already warns “if I follow you, I die” (p.98) and in the following poem directly sinks the ten commandments “in the deepest” (p.99). Perhaps Temperley is training us for what he reveals in the next pages: “he offered me the world, / he offered me to fly, / he offered me to throw myself / from the top of the temple / I put limits / and a handkerchief in his mouth / I would like to give him a kiss.” (p.109). If we think of God, who offers him everything, Temperley names the power to limit that which is offered to him. He limits God with the body and always returns to the erotic, to experience, to sensation and celebration: to the kiss. God offers him everything, Temperley shuts him up with a handkerchief in his mouth and offers him a kiss. 

   Temperley's world is fascinating, I don't know if it is translated into English or German. I know it in Spanish, in his complete work. When you get into the reading of her complete work, what happens is that you realize how the form of her poetry changes, the form of her verses. She comes from a symmetrical structure and towards the end of her life she dismantles it and throws it overboard and starts experimenting by making really magical poetry books.

   For example, in one of his last books called “Crawl”, what he does is to write it in the form of “strokes”, to honor his swimming.

Here is a picture of me with the tongue of the sea

Kisses!

Rozi