The Clearing

Murky and clouded
Is the state of my being
Held at the bottom
Away from clear thinking

These shackles and weights
Confine me below
To watch dance to surface
The air that I blow

And looking up for my bubbles
Freedoms so close
For what’s left of my air
Ripples an inch from my nose

The limb-binding chains
Constrict tighter around me
And sink me deeper and deeper
In darkened surroundings

So the struggle begins
A fight against death
For there’s only so long
I can hold my breath

Shifting and jerking
And tugging for freedom
Water, so sly
Convinces me to be done

She whispers soft promises
With no worries or stress
A slight shift in my mind
To except her request

The calm undercurrent
Plays with my hair
Intangles itself with the undersea scene
As I stare

Down here amidst muck
Nothing is clear
Except for these feelings
I have while I’m here

The darkness below
Has crept up to my sight
And my clear rising pebbles
Are consumed by the night

I sit still without struggle
Without light, without breath
What remains of my mind
Questions what’s left

How did I get here
Entangled in chains
Engulfed in deep waters
Confused and deranged

Who left me to die
At the bottom of the sea
Although murky and clouded
It is clear, it was me