House of Monsters
Irvine, CA
2023, Senior, Poetry & Spoken Word
Climate Hero: Paul Watson, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society
The ocean is a house of monsters.
We witness the rage of a killer whale
and call it orcus orca “the whale from hell.”
We aim our plastic spears for the heart of a kraken,
keep our eyes hunting for its escaping gasp.
We reel in nets tangled with sirens;
invent an island of garbage to bait the megalodon.
They hide underwater like cowards.
Aquaphobia,
Thalassophobia,
Megalohydrothalassophobia;
There are too many people
afraid of too many definitions of water
so we wage a war with all of the ocean.
We curse the ocean as our enemy.
Arm ourselves with plastic bottles
and styrofoam cups and cigarette butts;
leave streaks of oil as the haunting footsteps of a battleship;
launch trash bag parachutes that drift us back to the water.
We are afraid of its power
that toppled our tallest ships with the slap of a wave.
We call it a monster we can tame
with surfboards and beer cans buried in the sand.
We want to capture its magnificence
within the cement walls of an aquarium.
Our eyes shine brighter than its waters
Glare at it, dare at it to engage.
But the ocean
does not attack.
Only whispers for silence.
Patience.
Waltzes in rhythm.
Stares back
at the monsters
at us
at me.
Reflection
Reflection
I grew up visiting Seaworld at least once a week, and every trip, I would always run to the orca whales first. I remember folding my palms, one on top of the other, in the shape of a whale’s tail and chanting “Shamu! Shamu! Shamu!” I wondered why we called such a beautiful whale a “killer.” It was not until I grew much older when I learned the horrible exploitation and inhumane treatment of marine life in captivity. Although the research I did shattered my innocent fantasies, it motivated me to further advocate for the protection of marine wildlife through this poem. I’ve realized that historically, many people distanced themselves from the ocean because they were afraid of its mysteries or mistakenly believed the marine habitat does not affect humanity’s life on land. This distance caused people to antagonize the ocean and its diverse creatures. In order to achieve progress in combating pollution and endangerment of marine life, the relationship between humans and the ocean needs to be amended by admitting our mistakes and searching for solutions.