Sometimes, I find myself gasping for air,
tossed about by waves,
struggling to stay afloat.
I am overwhelmed.
All it takes is one final wave to crest
before I am plunged into the depths
of my psyche,
being pulled to where
the deceptively calm cerulean of the surface
gradates into navy.
It feels as though my ankle is tethered
to the ocean floor by a rope
and that rope is getting shorter,
or perhaps it is being pulled.
If that is true, I don’t want to know
what is doing that pulling,
trying to drag me down to the darkness.
In that time, my lungs burn for lack of air
and I don’t know how to fix it–
I don’t know how to escape–
because I have been spun in every direction,
and there are no landmarks in this deep blue.
That’s when I remember
the trick I was taught about bubbles
and how they always rise
toward the surface,
so I use my last bits of breath
and release it into the water
and notice the path that it takes.
I follow that path.
I rise with those bubbles.
And then I am at the surface again,
weary but alive.
I look back down at where I was,
see the depths beneath me,
reflect on my experience
and thank the dangerous, deep, dark waters
for the lesson
they taught me.
Because I know
that next time I feel that familiar tug
the next time that going with the flow
threatens to drown me,
I will remember that I know how to escape–
I just need to trust my breath.
Photo by Berend de Kort from Pexels
This week’s resource is a reminder that Black lives still matter and there are an abundance of ways that you can continue to support the cause. Here is a different carrd of resources than what I have previously linked to. There are several repeat sources and petitions, but it also includes material that was not on the other carrd that I referenced months ago.
The Yellow Brick Ave 
Beautifully put into words. It’s a hard lesson not everyone learns
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Thank you! I think it’s a lesson that we all must learn over and over.
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Lovely. Trusting our breath is crucial. 👏😊
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💛💛💛
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Thank you for reading my poems too. I find your writing really inspiring, and just wanted, I guess, to say thank you 😊
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That’s so sweet. I’m always happy to support incredible writing and writers!
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Likewise 😊
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Beautifully penned into words!!💕💕
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Thank you so much!
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Wonderful. Such a depth of emotions and feelings. Really stunning.
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Thank you so much! 💛
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You are so very welcome J!
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You captured this in a extraordinary way. Keep up the great work!🤠🔥
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Thank you so much!!
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I love this, Joy. Exactly what I wanted to read right now. 👌🏼
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Aww, thanks Tom! I’m glad you enjoyed it!
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Thank you for this. Thank you for noting and stating that it isn’t just a flash in the pan…
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Absolutely! I’m glad that it resonated with you!
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This is very nice piece. I feel I can relate to it very much. I’m trying to get my Associates Degree and I’ve had to do exams or write essays for many of my classes. It can be very stressful sometimes and it’s easy to get caught in that current of anxiety. But your right, sometimes we just need to take a breath and find the calm that leads us to.
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It’s advice that I’m better at giving than following
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I know how you feel.
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