Introducing #WordplayWednesdays - "You can't swim and I can't teach you"

What is the purpose of #WordplayWednesdays?

The focal point of poetry is to tell a story, a fable of the heart and mind. A poem’s purpose is to manifest a painting of connection between life experiences and the emotional core of a person’s psyche. Creative writing gives a platform for self and soul expression to its audience. Natalia (The Freelancer) for CW, wants her words to bring people back to a place where they find memories filled with profound feeling. A place where they realize they are not alone.

Check out Natalia's #WordplayWednesday for your "new" poetry fix. If you would like to contribute to the narrative please email us your submissions, subject: Wordplay Wednesdays at Copywrite.mke@gmail.com

 

You can't swim and I can't teach you

How did I get so lost in you
Without even knowing who I am with you
How do I want to love you like no one has tried to love you before
when I can't even break down walls
When I can't even breathe vulnerability in your presence
Let the guard fall, let the curtain fall, give into the unknown and take a bow
How can I ask and crave from you love
When I'm still learning how
I made sure to not fill you within my void
A void I had once thought of as so insignificant
A void I had thought of as irrelevant
Filled properly with self-love and reciprocal relationships
But now I know this void still remains
And pieces of you somehow fell in
I let them fall thinking I was in control
Thinking I was present in every moment we shared
Thinking my past was just that and wouldn't show up to take its toll
When in reality
I was drowning in your attention
Melting under your touch
Forgetting to be present
Forgetting that you didn't know enough
Forgetting that I could be too much
I want to unlearn for you
And for me
I want to be better for me
For you
I want to be the best me
Because I know it's what I deserve
Because I know it's what you deserve
But how selfish of me to ask of you what I know I wouldn't give
How selfish of me to ask you to sit around and wait for me to grow
I mean I want us to grow together and be good together
Be great together
But how can I ask you to be next to me in a journey that could hurt you along the way
How can I ask you to commit to love
If I'm still learning how to give it away
I want you to stay
I damn near want to get on my knees and beg you to stay
Say hey
Look me in the eyes
Can’t you see good in me
Can't see all the good I could be
Can't you see all ways I could love you
Reciprocal and healthily
Beneficial and mutually
Always giving
And reminding myself to let you be free
Can't you see inside of me
How heavy and sweet my love would feel draped all around you
And inside you
But can I ask you to wait?
Can I ask you to stick around and watch me grow into someone you could never hate
I want you to see in me all the great I find in you
All the great I already have within
I want you to see the potential
Because I know it's inside
But can I ask you to wait
To stay awhile and join me on the ride
When I know how difficult it will be for you to swim against the tide
 

/Natalia