Deep Breath
I/have/always/had/a/fear/of/drowning/I/used/to/close/my/eyes/over/every/bridge/we/would/cross/preparing/for/the/darkness/I/would/encounter/if/the/bridge/collapsed/from/under/us/and/we/plunged/into/the/water/the/salt/against/my/skin/the/water/weighing/my/arms/down/they/are/useless/for/I/never/learned/how/to/swim/I/am/completely/trapped/down/here/I/will/become/a/skeleton/in/an/unmarked/mass/grave/with/the/water/filling/my/lungs/I/can’t/even/scream/the/harder/I/try/to/breathe/the/quicker/I’ll/go/I/am/losing/my/breath/to/the/thing/I/once/relied/on/to/breathe/this/fear/goes/back/to/my/birth/my/little/body/in/distress/my/umbilical/cord/wrapped/around/my/neck/I/am/strangling/myself/with/the/the/thing/I/once/relied/on/to/breathe/this/fear/goes/beyond/my/birth/this/is/a/generational/curse/my/people/drowned/in/this/Atlantic/they/chose/to/fly/because/they/knew/what/it/was/like/to/choke/on/air.
View related poem: The time I Almost Drowned
