Echoes From Afar

Under Water

I breathe still under water
Not floating or drowning
But somewhere underneath
The ocean's covering preventing air.

I find myself still and steady,
Filling up my lungs with water
Not drowning
Eyes wide open seeing through
The dark watery prison.

I fight it not
Nor do I embrace it
I am not a fish
I do not belong in these depths
But I stay underneath
Breathing steadily
Surviving still without air.

I hear nothing
See nothing
Breathe in nothing but water
Not drowning
Not swimming
But thriving
In spite of my unnatural state
Of life.

I am not a swimmer
I will not struggle to reach the surface,
Just to swim even harder
To reach the shores,
Who has time to fight
An ocean?

I stay still beneath it's raging waters,
I remain steady trapped in
It's darkness,
I breathe in what it allows,
I see only what it permits,
I lay low
Quiet but not indifferent
Adapting to it's temperament,
When it is calm and let's in
Life and light,
I will rise above it
Dead or alive,
Whichever the case
I thrive in pain.