Breath

I hold my breath
To hold the world

Envelop it in my chest
Protect it from 
Everything that wants
To corrupt and
Hurt it

I hold my breath
Like an armour
Against the pain 
Raging around me

A fortress 
Of strength 
And solitude

I hold my breath
Without thinking
Like second nature

Just to be
For a moment
Outside of everything

A pause in time
To not think
Not feel 
Anything

I hold my breath
When I don’t know
What else to do
What else to say
How else to feel

Like pressing pause
On a movie
That is moving
Far too fast

I hold my breath
When the suffering
Gets too much

The hold lets me 
Float above it
And see things
From a different view

I hold my breath
When I can’t think

Because the voices
In my head
And all around me
Have become too loud

I hold my breath 
In anticipation of 
The worst 
Even when there’s
No objective reason
To fear

But then I can’t 
Hold it in anymore

My lungs go soft
The air comes rushing out
My body melts 
Into the surrounds
A little more

And then
I must surrender
To the world.