Free Dive

By Hannah Siden

---

The echo is more beautiful
than I anticipated: my heart
moving to its own rhythm,
surrounded by black & white
film grain. I imagine a diver
with her underwater camera,
eyes wide under a mask.
The muffled sounds of breath
& water pressure. Referencing
the images, the tech explains
my condition to me incorrectly.
He’s my age though & so earnest
that I nod along politely,
marvelling at the bioluminescence
on his screen: flashes of red
& green & blue across my
grey heart. Signs of light
at the bottom of the ocean.
My rate steadies, rises, steadies.
He tells me Breathe in, hold it,
release. The machine makes
a noise like a whale surfacing.
He says That’s the sound of your
blood. In the end, the test isn’t
enlightening in the way they’d
hoped. I need to come back
in two weeks for a bubble study.
I make the right noises of
approval & disappointment
& obligation but can I be honest
with you? I just learned my heart
is a creature of the deep. I am
drifting two miles down, in awe
of the radiance. 

Hannah is a writer and filmmaker living on the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations (Vancouver, BC). Her poetry is published or forthcoming with PRISM International, The League of Canadian Poets, Metatron Press, and others. Find her on Twitter @hannah_siden or at hannahsiden.com.

---

• Are you a SWWIMmer with literary news to share (publication/feature/award/book/book review)? We’d love to shout out your accomplishments in our Weekly Spotlight! Please email swwimmiami@gmail.com. (No DMs on any social media platforms, please.)

• Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter/X, and Bluesky for more updates—and visit our website to see past, present, and future readings & events.

---

**We do our best to preserve the integrity of each poem; however, due to programming limitations, some poems may read differently on a mobile phone and in certain browsers. For best viewing, use Chrome on a desktop/laptop.