Sara Jama Poet Free verse

Notes About The Poem

Written on April 20th, 2026 for Ink's prompt Romanticize the Pulse Poetry Contest. I picked the line "If to love you, I must drown".

If to love you, I must Drown

I desperately gasp for you to save me,
as your indifference begins to remove all remaining traces of oxygen from my searing lungs.
Asphyxiation becomes more imminent.
Cortisol burns through tearing muscles,
ripping the marrow from aching bones, flailing to tread water.

Exhaustion floods in; saline-soaked clothing weighs heavier.
A siren’s call pierces through obscured waves,
crescendoing under a stygian sky,
tempting me under.

Dread replaces pleading.
Hope of survival is now beyond any comprehension.
Your voice no longer lingers;
it’s superseded by forceful whispers:
“If to love you, I must drown.”

Realisation hits like a tsunami crashing upon an unsuspecting ship.
To truly love you, I must love myself.
You were never my salvation.

So I must drown in this sickening sea of anguish,
let all the trauma pull me down into sheer oblivion.
Feel my body thrash as the light leaves my submissive eyes.

In order to be reborn, I must ascend way below.

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Ink Empress May 5, 2026 at 2:40 AM Dear Sara, This is just beyond impeccable and i felt every line as if its the voice of my soul too! And to love we must love ourselves first true, confusing while passionately obsessed and engrossed in the emotional layers of love, that they are our salvation and savior one who could save us from the despair is a common mistake so many do! I really love the metaphors in this and the depth of this poem, truly makes this a fave for me! Congratulations on your first place win in my contest. Thank u for joining my contest