Defining moment.

I was born in the undertow,
saltwater stitched into my skin,
lungs learning early how to hold
everything in.

The world did not pause
when I shattered�"
it kept spinning,
louder, crueler,
a blur of locker doors and
names I didn’t ask for.

But somewhere,
beneath all the noise,
I heard it�"
a song only I could hear.
A breath in the dark.
A whisper that maybe
I could stay.

Returning to school
wasn’t brave,
it was survival.
It was dragging my body
through another hallway,
carrying silence like armor,
until the silence cracked.

And I found therapy
like a shipwreck finds shore�"
ungraceful,
but saved.

There was no miracle.

Only moments.
Moments that said,
“You are not too much.”
Moments that said,
“You’re not alone.”
Moments where
the ocean calmed long enough
to let me breathe.

And in those moments,
I learned
drowning doesn’t mean
you’re broken.
It means you’re still fighting
to surface.

Reviews

[MayHeartsYou]

Wow. I have so much to say about this one. The whole thing flows really well. You use the recurring ocean imagery very well. I like how you tagged the second to last phrase to the one before it by reusing the "M" consonant which then leads into the ending that is punctuated by coming back to the ocean imagery saying 'Even when you're dying, mentally and physically, you're still frickin alive" Also, "Returning to school wasn't brave, it was survival. It was dragging my body through another hallway, carrying silence like armor, until the silence cracked." Like WHAT! :o Excellent.