A Sinking Feeling Poem by Warren Augustus de Guzman

The ship rocks dangerously to its right,
And you hold on to the rail with all your might.
But you will slip and you will fall,
Off the boat, into the water, into the night.

You break your nails while clawing the floor,
You bang and break your back on a swinging door.
But you still slip and you still fall,
Off the boat, into the dark depths offshore.

The ship rolls back up, sharply to its left,
And flings you through the air down to the depths.
And as you slip, and as you fall,
Off the boat, and through the air bereft,

You break your heart as you hit the water,
Your soul freezes over with a violent shudder,
For you still slip, and you still fall,
Off the boat, into cold water on death’s border.