The Lake
Emma Ogden
Honorable Mention - 2024 S. Gordden Link Poetry Award
On days when I can smell the sunshine
And days when the wind cuts straight to my core
I am stuck here.
Never stopping to catch my breath
Forced to keep walking, waiting
All for my mind to clear
The sun rises and falls, as does the water
I fear that if I should fall
The ground beneath my body would not catch me
I once saw a dead fish at the bottom,
It’s body too heavy for the water to sweep it away
I couldn’t help but look.