The first gasp is painful
made sweet by the realization
that breath has entered me

The darkness shifts
uneasy against my breath

Still hesitant to hope
my soul clings
to the remnants of waiting
until

I am shaken
deeply shaken
and all that will not last
falls away
to reveal that
which will remain

The sound of my own panting fills my ears now
as power wells within
crescendos
I am unimpeded

Light breaks through
surrounds me
with life

I am free.