Air
Life without you is
The moment the man looks
up
Far, far up
To the top of the water
From the bottom of the
river
And he’s not sure
He has the air
In his lungs
To make it
He knows he must try to
live
It is his choice to live
His body wants to live
So he plants his feet
And pushes hard from sunken
stones
Mossy and indifferent
Except
They make the push off the
bottom
Possible
Hope is the air that fills a balloon made of
fear
These opposites - hope and fear - work together
To pull the drowning man
Upwards
Clawing through fathoms
Legs kicking, tiring
Tears becoming part of the
story of the river
Fear and hope both grow
With each stroke upwards
River-top nearing
Cellophane lid of salvation
Do you see him?
No matter how much this
man knows
No matter what he has
accomplished
His knowledge
His life
His moment
His Being
Is compressed
To this:
With light comes air
With air comes life
And the water
Is getting
Brighter…
--Eric Marley
