Caged Connections
Bethesda, MD
2020, Junior, Poetry & Spoken Word
A burial is taking place,
where she will lie, forever with a moving element,
trapped in a cage of once was’es, captured behind bars of the past.
Yet her wings fly in the space the future brings, the hope of better times carry air in the
stale darkness.
She flies on the quilted connection of all life, her heart beats in my palm.
Vibrant corals weaved with shamrock and streaks of green fish with vermillion scales swim
through my dreams, a distant memory, accompanied always with the promise of a broken future.
As the harsh brutality of time passes, slivers of currants and azures, shapes of life, and breaths of
air, slip through my grasp, until only a barren expanse remains.
Da-dum, da-dum, da-dum. The rhythms of our planet pulse beneath my fingers. Da-dum,
da-dum, da-dum. Muscles ripple through her limp body, strengthening my own.
The swell of shifting current awakes my humanity, immersing my soul in water, where first life
and memory began.
Reflection
Reflection
Words have always been the way I express myself. The strongest weapon I have is my voice, and that is how I show my passion for this oceanic and planetary crisis. The concept of the bird in a cage representing Mother Nature came to me when we were spelunking in Belize, and my mom mentioned the phrase "canary in a coal mine," referring to the oxygen levels in the cave at the time. The idea stuck with me—how oxygen levels can be seen in the health and well-being of a bird. I translated this into my piece, trapping Mother Nature in a cage behind bars, surviving on the hopes that we can transform this crisis; that all species and life will come together, will connect, and remember that the one thing that binds us all together is our planet Earth. That is our connection. I love planting, and I've learned about the impacts of using native plants over invasive ones, as native plants allow for more insects and support in the ecological community, cultivating a biodiverse ecosystem bursting with life. While it may seem that this has no connection to the ocean, we are all linked, brought together by a network of affiliations, and if everyone takes the time to have a mini national park in their front yard, the impacts will be seen in cleaner air and oceans, and water bursting with life. Everything is connected. It is all about how our actions impact our connections.