I stand at the bottom of the ocean

watching something drown.

Bodies melting into bodies,

limbs grasping for purchase,

as if to claw out of the mound

and reach for the surface.

But the ocean’s grip is too much,

white-knuckled and nail-less,

with hands as big as me,

too heavy to be thrown off.

I circle around the creature,

avoiding its frantic grappling,

watching its fraying flesh shrink

as I come up for air.

From above the waves lap at me,

enticing me,

Come back down, they seem to say.

I wonder if I hear them right,

or if I’m hearing myself instead.