Waves

It  starts in waves

Small ones 

Lapping at your feet 

Warm, normal, comfortable even 

Slowly growing to your knees 

Now your waist 

Growing forevermore 

So slowly you don't even realise 

Bam, it's at your neck 

Growing exponentially now 

Before you know it, 

You're drowning

Gasping for air 

The warmth is now frigid

You're shivering, you can't breathe 

You start to fight, desperate for escape 

It grips you tighter 

The more you struggle, the harder it grips you 

Like a whirlpool 

Feels like the cold hands of death 

Death would maybe be an escape 

A release too sweet by this point 

But it doesn't let you leave 

You're not getting out so quickly 

The grip is tight, unrelenting 

You grow tired 

Maybe this is how it is 

This is your new normal 

Warmth, but a strange sweet memory

You grow used to this 

It's become comfortable

These cold depths you alone reside in

 You stop resisting

You're floating inside 

Some days the waves let you be

Some days they take you deeper inside

You're used to it 

Slowly the tide seems to turn 

The water seems to abate 

Slowly you can breathe again 

It's down to your neck 

It's down to your waist 

You feel happier 

Then suddenly a wave knocks you over 

But you're stronger now 

You can fight it down to your waist 

It stays steadily at your waist 

Refusing to go down 

There are still strong waves 

Which make it go up to your neck, 

Sometimes engulfing you entirely

Leaving you gasping for air again 

Waves which scare you

Is the darkness back 

Is it strong enough to pull me down again 

On those days, you seem to forget 

You are stronger too 

It might pull you down 

But you won't stay down 

You learn to fight back harder 

Emerging stronger each time 

The waves may stay up to your waist now 

But you've come this far 

You've been engulfed and emerged 

You know their strength now 

You're closer to shore now