I.
the day you almost drowned
you tasted
the same saline air i breathe you
thought you made a tomb
of my home
you spit out the waters
in which i feel most alive
it wasn’t in disgust
but oh, it stung
how that which soothes me
was so foreign to you
II.
i was pulled up
grip tight on my hair
so that i could breathe again
i only felt in distress
once I was taken out of the water
saltwater in my nose
saltwater in my throat
i could barely walk
but i can’t remember another time
the world had moved so slowly
III.
you seemed to be dancing in the current
the way the waves combed through your hair
over and over
did you forget that
a human’s body isn’t stronger than the ocean?
your legs flowed like the sweetest waltz
it was the swiftest slip
IV.
the earth stopped moving for
what felt like eight years
i didn’t realize when I lost control of my body
i only saw water green
a Fish
only felt peace
from the bottom of the water
where time didn’t exist
i had never felt so close to the universe
until i succumbed to the tides
*
i beg forgiveness
for becoming a settler and forgetting my origins
you probably met my ancestors
they probably talked with you
you swim, uncolonized
making oxygen of holy water
they say Saltwater cures everything faster
in the earth’s tender womb
i felt
I finally went back home
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