Keep Art Alive :: “Deep Sea” :: Art by Sarah Joncas

“Holding over like an illusion,
when it all breaks down and we’re runaways,
standing in the wake of our pain,
and we stare straight into nothin’;
but, we’re covered all the same.”

Casting shadows (saying goodbye)
by me

Swim, he says
as the water becomes the wave
and all they can do is keep pushing against it

the spirals twist her hair into tangles
salt water stinging her questioning eyes
her clothes in a heap by the disappearing shore
left abandon in this chase to be free

I can’t, she cries
as the water becomes a wall around
and all she can do is fight to breathe

her words stick like hooks in the back of her throat
fear collapsing around her like an ending
pale skin changing from cold shocking pink
to the translucence of sinking beneath the sky

Try, he pleads
as his hands reach out in opposing directions
never quite reaching her side

he is always somewhere floating beyond arm’s reach
never quite able to stand at her side
yet the water invites her daring dives ever and again
and she always forgets just how it feels to drown

Goodbye, she replies
her muscles contracting and contradicting the resistance
as she realizes the shore is closer than it seems

she leaves his clothes untouched
except for his grey fraying tee shirt
this one was always her favorite
this one she’ll take to keep warm

The sun,
she’s leaving, too
right alongside her
making shadows in the sand as they go
marks that will be gone by tomorrow

Under the Pressure :: War On Drugs