Love like Drowning

This poem helped me realize how much I crave connection, even when it overwhelms me. If you've ever felt both held and hurt by someone's touch, this might feel familiar.

My heart is full

A spring, overflowing

Bottomless

Clear

Leaking

 

Spilling warmth

Sugared, scalding

I soak inside, my frigid skin thawing

A soft fog, boiling into absence

 

My mind is full

A puddle, quivering

Grimy

Stagnant

Alluring

 

Slick with excuses

Sediment, not sentiment

It reflects a face I don’t recognize,

or maybe I never smiled like that

 

You hover, too close

I crave the absence of touch

 

Vines curl inside me, whispering comfort

Splitting ribs to sow affection

The poison of exposure

Burns my skin

I erupt

 

I scream and claw at my blistered skin

Begging the burn to erase me

 

Racing blindly,

I chase collapse

There

Water

 

Diving headlong,

I don’t look

 

The water cradles me

Sharply

 

It beckoned,

but it was wearing Death’s robes

 

Hope

never pierced

like this

 

I fold into silence

Relief?

No.

Rupture.

I mistook surface tension for depth.

Author's Note

Please give me constructive criticism! Are there any overused cliches? How can I make my writing more visceral and emotional? Is my vocabulary and word choice spot-on, or does it need some work? I'm not really sure how a poem like this should be formatted, so feel free to give me feedback on that as well.