I waited till nightfall
till the water was cold
till the water matched the midnight sky
I threw myself in
Face first I exhaled
till all the air fled my lungs
till I willed them to function as gills
I threw myself in
Motionless I became
till my exhilaration formed into yet another disappointment
till I had something else to add to my pile of outlier experiences
I threw myself in
Sensation returned to my eyes
till the sting of the sun again became a warm embrace
till understanding once again claimed squatter rights in my mind
I threw myself in
The river wouldn’t have me
In the morning on the other side of all the things
I went back to it all knowing
The river threw me out
© Christopher F. Brown 2015
Mar 1, 2015
Mar 1, 2015 at 9:05 PM UTC
I waited till nightfall
till the water was cold
till the water matched the midnight sky
I threw myself in
Face first I exhaled
till all the air fled my lungs
till I willed them to function as gills
I threw myself in
Motionless I became
till my exhilaration formed into yet another disappointment
till I had something else to add to my pile of outlier experiences
I threw myself in
Sensation returned to my eyes
till the sting of the sun again became a warm embrace
till understanding once again claimed squatter rights in my mind
I threw myself in
The river wouldn’t have me
In the morning on the other side of all the things
I went back to it all knowing
The river threw me out
© Christopher F. Brown 2015
Request permission to use this poem