drowning with a view

drowning in a city is

easy, smog covers

the scene, you

can choke

as loudly as you

want to and your

next door neighbor

will have the decency

to look surprised

when the ambulance

arrives; he does not

know you, nor you

him and that’s the

problem, or maybe

the solution to

everything

drowning in a city

is easy, stay outside

in the rain for too long

and people will assume

you plan to melt

into the sidewalk

stop breathing for

a minute

and everyone will think

your lips are blue from

the cold, look out

at the skyline and

smile because who wouldn’t

want to go with a good

view, there is always happiness

in the small things in

the city but they just

get overshadowed by the

big things so easily

there areso many big things

all around

you drown quietly

while you admire the

skyline, shadowed figure

floating in the pool

that is the feeling of

being forgettable, of being

a mere speck for those

living in the tallest building

drowning in the city is easy

and not uncommon, that’s why

no one will try to stop you here

no one will look at you

and see anything out of the ordinary

if they see you, at all.

One thought on “drowning with a view

  1. I thought the repetition of the word “drowning” made the poem very powerful. And, as someone who has lived in the middle of downtown Los Angeles, this poem really resonated with me how everyone just passes by everyone else without seeing them. I liked how you showed the duality of this experience, both good and bad (and good in the bad and vice versa).

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