Spine bent forward by a hand that says ‘walk upright’
Eyes locked on the ground, begging to see the horizon
Rolling with the tide, way out there;
If the walls of the pit weren’t so steep
We could climb above this suffocation and breathe.
Eyes covered by a hand that says ‘behold’
A shapeless fear in the shadows
Waiting at the edges of the world, an invasion
And our hearts beating madly with it
Limbs that would rather tear this place apart
Than help to build it
Even though the sand here runs like water
Filling the space between our lives
Our bodies caked with it
Still, to sink is to know that fear by name, the broken will,
Choking desperation that forces us to grasp at the saving hand
Offered to us by our captor.

Image is from the 1964 film Woman in the Dunes ( 砂の女 ) which served as the inspiration for this poem. Easily one of the best films I’ve seen, I highly recommend it!