Oh Little Goldfish, don't you know you're strong?

I always loved the ocean

the waves crashing on shore,

to and fro

lapping up the sand greedily in its maw

But when I was a child,

I was scared

scared when life became viscious waves

never satifisfied in taking

taking

taking

until there was nothing left

And I was a victim

as the world took many precious

innocent things from me

sometimes before I had ever known them

So fear gripped me

and I felt more like a goldfish in the sea

rocking unwillingly in the undertow

afraid to brace myself firmly on the seafloor

I refused to speak up

I couldn't speak out

I was silent

as a storm raged around me

not a word passed my lips

My golden scales faded

into an ugly orange

My eyes closed

so that I couldn't even see the beauty

of sunlight dancing in dark blue

I became choked up

I couldn't live the life I wanted to

even when the waves calmed

the dark pools stilling

I hid behind seaweed

Until, one day, I decided

the only way to get better was to fight

The only way to be happy

was to fight for my own happiness

Where my toes would curl in the soft sand

and hesitation would hold me from jumping in

I now leap into the water with unbridled joy

I will unapologetically swim

to the darkest recesses of the ocean

Seizing my future in my own hands

I will create the rays of light burning like fire

on the ocean floor

I will welcome the lull of the undertow

Whisper kindly to the riptide

Still my frantic heart when a storm approaches

Because like the storm and the ocean,

I am a force

A calming, powerful,

determined force

Unwavering in my passion

I will forget the pain of the bad times

the constricting nature of fear

In favor of welcoming

the sea.

This poem is about: 
Me
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