Kursk

The voices are silent echoes. This is the hardest part.
The water’s up to our ankles with no sign of letting up.
But I’m still climbing out.
I always meant to tell you that I never meant you harm in this life.
I’ll have to wait until the next to make things right.
I’m tapping s.o.s. codes on the wall, but this is as far as it goes.
I’m writing my regret notes from the heart.
I never loved you, you know.
Because I’m riding a lie and I’m writing a lie.
I took a chance and we’re paying for the lie.
I’m writing “I know the fault’s all mine”, but please stay strong.
If they remember me, will they forget the meaning of why I came so far to drown?
I’m forgetting it myself.
I find I’m staring at these rusty bolts this hatch was attached to.
My eyes are glued. This coffin moves, angled down.
The skeletal walls are brittle. The salt corrodes it off.
Your spent oxygen fogs the metal. You’re taking greedy breaths from us but I forgive you all.