- after Chen Chen
Rest among the samphire.
Hum poseidon under your breath.
Practice how to breathe underwater.
Vex the sand. Disrupt it. Become it.
Crunch it between your toes.
Adorn yourself in oyster tongues.
Go far. Go farther.
Excavate where others have been before.
Bless those places as if they never have.
Deduce the distance between yourself and the horizon.
Jolt.
Underpin your conclusion with false connections. Medicate yourself before it is too late.
Whittle a fishing pole. Don’t use it.
Negotiate with the native species beneath your feet.
Zap.
Inherit your father’s heart condition.
Keel over in a public toilet.
Quake. Hold on to the sink.
Try to wake up.
Try to wake up.
Outmanoeuvre the incoming tide.
Maiya Dambawinna is an 18 year old aspiring poet, writer and student from the UK. She co-created Honey Machine Magazine and was Foyle Young Poet of the Year in 2018. She is the contributing editor for Iceberg Tales.