I float in a muddy river drifting off to nowhere
Clay embankments confining me within the walls of my mind
Don’t try to climb them; you’ll slip
The crows will laugh again as you fall back to the water
Covered in grey war paint that camouflages you
Against your treacherous fears and faults

I wonder if ducks can swim upriver
But me, I’m caught on a downwards flow
Barely breaching the surface of the river
As my stagnant thoughts grow murky and hazed

The boatman is my only companion
But his mouth is as silent as the colourless sky above
And I’m too afraid to look at his face
To see what his eyes have to say

I drift in a muddy river floating off to somewhere
That I don’t want to end up
I wonder if these straggling roots along the embankments
Will catch me before I slip over the edge
Or will my past betray me as the crows laugh at me
For not being strong enough to save myself?