Steph Shuff
angler fish
a little white light
dances in the deep dark night
shines like hope in an endless blue
it beckons me
to explore the sea
way deep down in the bottom of you
I stand on the ledge
peering over the edge
still salty from the dive before
wet and aching
with a heart that's breaking
like I'm stranded on an endless shore
I do not go lightly
into love, gay and brightly
I don't toe my feet along the line
I am fearless and free
I was raised by the sea
So I swan dive — head first — in the brine
I behold the hue
in the heart of you
like Jonah squinting down into the whale
I am afraid to fall
and to risk it all
to collect you like another fabled tale
if you're not for me
if we're not meant to be
then spit me back into the blue
send me down deep
to enjoy loveless sleep
there is nothing worth living after you
but if you swallow me whole
then consume me, my soul
breathe me till I am in your bones
welcome me in
let me under your skin
where I can make a home inside your home
you dazzle my sight
with poetry, so bright
it twinkles and lights up the blue
if you bite, don't you miss
because my warning is this:
I can be an angler fish too