A long draw of breath

and an exhale.

More of a heavy sigh,

than breathing.

I see you over there worrying yourself

under a burden

of your own selection.

This is always tough to watch.

A person pinned down

with nails they drove in

to claim a position,

but now,

they are stuck.

Unable to remove that nail,

or saw off the leg,

and the tide is rising.

 

Why do we make our selves suffer so?

Why do we grip our guilt like a boat,

in angry seas?

Unable to set ourselves free.

Why do we hold on

to who we were?

He’s no longer him,

She’s no longer her.

Even the mountains change

with the shift of the Earth,

and the wind and the rain.

Only human beings

cling to pain;

everything else grows on.

 

I see you there

at the end.

Your guilt is your friend,

your excuse

and your defense,

against the whole world.

Such a pitiful thing

we become

when we can’t let go

and move on.

We drag all our sins around,

like the define us,

when all they do

is hold us down.

The tide is rising,

will you let it go,

before you drown?

 

HG – 2020