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
