I can’t breathe. 
All this weight
is crushing my chest. 
My arms are bound.
My face is under water. 
My lungs are burning. 
My mind is racing. 
The panic sets in
and I want to scream,
but my mouth is gagged
and my nose pinched shut.
I’m all alone
here in this darkness. 
My time is running short. 
I can feel consciousness
slipping away. 
I fight to stay alive
but my effort’s in vain. 
I know death is inevitable.
I’m not ready to go. 
My thoughts 
are flickering out. 
My body lays limp 
and my head drops down
as my life ebbs away. 
Now there’s just the darkness
and a corpse,
laying unbound
and unfettered. 
There was no crushing weight,
only the guilt and shame
of all my regrets. 
There was no gag,
only my open mouth -
the passage for the water
to fill my lungs.