The crabs bury and birds cry,
but they don’t know about the parasites,
the incest,
the illness above and below,
the way it never changes.
When a beaver builds a dam
and the water stops flowing,
he can rest.
Even among stillness,
I lay awake, I keep stumbling,
I still hear it flooding.
Life keeps happening,
and even on dry land, I drown
in the arms of perseveration.
Perseveration, perseveration– a sinkhole where
everyone else can forgive
but I was never angry.
Water tastes so bitter in the lungs,
but only an angry person would spit it out.
I hold it down.
I asphyxiate, I turn a fine shade of blue,
and the theory remains, that
life keeps happening.
-
Author:
Florence Mango (
Offline) - Published: May 26th, 2022 18:07
- Comment from author about the poem: Sometimes, you stop breathing, and it feels like a betrayal when the world doesn’t stop with you.
- Category: Reflection
- Views: 17
- Users favorite of this poem: L. B. Mek
Offline)
Comments2
Indeed, it does. Thank you for sharing. 🙂
(thanks for sharing, such
an impactful read
your poetry, is full
of such purposely, stark
imagery
and insightful commentary
which helped inspire these words from me
thank you!)
respiratory, cyclicality
is a good thing
we breath, in
and
we breath, out..
in between
is our raging thoughts
and bulldozing heartbeats
but every once in a while
we're gifted
a stuttering, breath or two
where
be it by food
'that's gone down the wrong hole'
or
'a gust of wind that catches us out'
we immediately, experience
that true, Physical
asphyxiation, sensation
and we begin, to squirm
eyes reddening by the millisecond;
our mouth, gasping like a fish
flapping its desperate
last dance of life;
and fingers, aimlessly clutching
at our throats
and that betraying, air..
All, in our fight
for survival!
for you See, however bleak
our perception of Life, may be
our Fear of losing it
is DNA, innate
and so reactively, in that moment
we fight
to keep it...
'Life keeps happening'
indeed!
till, it doesn't
and by then, sadly
its too late, to fight
or ponder or waste
it...
'if we be the lucky ones
still breathing
lets go about, our assumed
duty
of Living!'
This was such a beautiful read. I absolutely love your line, "However bleak our perception of life may be, our fear of losing it is DNA, innate, and so reactively, in that moment we fight to keep it." It's something many of us (myself included) seem to forget often; that we are made to fight for our lives, and that we always will, no matter the circumstance, no matter how often you may think you don't want to. When it all comes down to the wire, that's when we truly learn that persistence is built into us. Thank you so much for sharing!
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