My Mother

I was raised by an Aquarian woman
Who kept me in her water and drowned me in her waves.
I was an Earth child submerged inside of her gasping for air
Hyper-hydrated and suffocating.
I was born an evolved creature bearing the number Nine
Already knowing the ways of the world.
An unteachable and unloveable being
Drowning in my mother's embrace.

When I was given yet another life and realized it was just for her
I made it my mission to heal every single soul around me
For if I could not escape my purpose
I would in turn drown the world Myself until there was nothing left to give.
Now thirsty and bare I lay scornful
With two heavy amber eyes piercing through her.

Desperation and exhaustion has forced me on a pilgrimage
Seeking myself like an unspeakable treasure.
No guidance no vision no beginning no end.
Why do they say that I am the beginning of all beginnings and endings of all endings?
Has this number Nine become a curse of impulsive action seeking lavender fields as I long for the ocean
Secretly.
Not knowing which way is up or down
I can feel the wind blow the water's mist around me getting lost in my wild hair
Her call to me.
I gather the earth in my hands until they are full
I close my eyes and take my last breath preparing to be drowned once more.

I feel the tide begin to steal the sand from beneath my feet as the water rushes around me.
Her seaweed mane bounds my ankles and I am once again her prisoner.
I have no choice so I surrender to her sea.
Once again I am submerged in her salty tears
I can feel the pressure of the water as I sink deeper and deeper.
I have become swollen and can no longer see the moonlight.
As I finally sink to the bottom I can feel the earth at my feet.
How can this be?
Is it true that my earth is encased in her sea
and that her sea is encased in my earth?
Is it true that we are one in the same?
How desperately I long for that to be true
For my deepest desperation is not to be a child of the earth
Or to be a child of the sea
But to simply be my mother's daughter.

by: Domonique Echeverria

Virginia Drowned
from the literary journal "Every Saturday"
1870