The Shoreline’s Kiss
Kaunakakai, HI
2020, Senior, Poetry & Spoken Word
I went to the beach the other day
The sandy walkway from the road onto the beach is gone
The sand sank into the sea
And now we’re left with a rocky pathway onto a disappearing strip of sand
The shoreline comes close to kissing the road
It kisses my feet instead
I wonder who’s more disappointed,
Me, or the sea
I drove past the church the other day
The far edge of the road is out of reach
The asphalt sank into the sea
And now we’re left with half a road
The shoreline comes close to kissing my car
It kisses the road instead
I wonder if it was trying to make it to Sunday Mass
I went to my friend’s beach house the other day
The space between his back door and the sea is shrinking
The beach sank into the sea
And now we’re left with a beach house without a proper beach
The shoreline comes close to kissing his house
It kisses his yard instead
I wonder how long it will take for his home to be swallowed by the sea
I went to STEM Conference the other day
We know we have the world in our hands, the water trickling through our fingers like sand
Some of our hope sank into the sea
And now we’re left with statistics we can’t deny
Temperatures are breaking records across the world
Sea levels are rising at their fastest rate in two thousand years
And there are more greenhouse gasses in our atmosphere than any time in human history
I wonder, who will keep fighting?
I spoke to my people today
The say our time left is running away
There are islands that sank into the sea
And now we’re left with no choice but to change
To stop tampering with the water cycle
To cut down on our carbon emissions and become more efficient
I wonder if we can keep the tides at bay
I’ll speak to my grandchildren someday
They’ll walk a world with brighter days
And I’ll be left with stories of how my generation saved the Earth
I’ll speak to my grandchildren someday
I’ll kiss their foreheads and watch them play
I will speak to my grandchildren someday
Because I know that “every little thing
Is gonna be alright”
Reflection
Reflection
When I started writing “The Shoreline’s Kiss,” I wanted to talk about how the world is changing and emphasize how real it is, especially for someone living on an island. I wanted to talk about the things I’ve been seeing and talking about regularly, so I mentioned real places on my island home as well as actual facts about climate change. I was sad and kind of angry at the world, but as I continued writing, I realized that I wanted to wake people up and say “hey, this is real.” I wanted to make them feel something, but I also wanted to give them hope. My message to viewers of my artwork is that we have to open our eyes to what is happening and realize that the worst thing we can do now is refuse to change. I want people to realize that there is a real problem, a real threat, and that if we actually take the steps needed to combat this crisis, our futures will be bright. I carpool as much as I can; I conserve as much energy as possible by never leaving on lights and always unplugging unused electronics; my house is run on solar energy; I try to eat smart by buying local, eating more greens, and cutting back on meat; and I try to build conversation with other youth because educated people make smart choices that can help the environment.