Oh child. Oh.
You know my secret now.
Found it. Found me. Found you.
Living in the wreckage
Under the water.
I didn’t show you the way—
I didn’t steady your limbs,
Tuck your head under your arms,
Straight arms pointing down,
Didn’t tell you, it’s in the knees,
Down on my knees, push off and fly
Down, down, down. Splash deep.
Push back up. Swim back up.
The entrance to our lungs
Feeling the weight of almost there.
I have managed to live here alone.
Under the waters. Waves of tears.
Holding my breath. Gasping for air.
Bubbles in the brine. Birthright.
Faced down and floating. Bloated.
Drowning as a way to live.
[Words by Margaret Elysia Garcia; Art by Ross Amador]
Throwing Chanclas 
Only bloat can weigh a mermaid down. Nice poetry.💦