the ocean terrifies me
each year i stay
closer and closer to
shore, afraid of being
swept away, with memories
of those moments when
i was uncertain where was up, or down,
where my feet should go,
where to find breath
now, i stand amid a sea change
that i have waded into
only ankle deep
but i have to step in
farther, to trust the current,
to be ready for the eddies and the storms,
to accept the distance and the depth,
and know that there is a hand
extended toward me,
so i need not swim alone
however much i fear
our drowning.
narinda heng 