I remember you. (A poem in four parts)
Harrisburg, NC
2018, Junior, Poetry & Spoken Word
i.
Remember me?
I remember you
A hand dripping black reaching down
to suffocate my children
a poison increasing
leaving toxic rainbows shining on my skin
spreading like a deadly sin
Oil spill
ii.
Remember me?
I remember you
A careless hungry mouth eating
all you want and still more
a crippling gluttony
my children silenced because of your theft
what do you do when there’s nothing left?
Overfishing
iii.
Remember me?
I remember you
Trash and junk leaking from your ears
garbage dripping from your eyes
I am choking on your excess
my children are crippled by your waste
some crimes can never be erased
Pollution
iv.
Remember me?
I remember you
I give you oxygen
transportation and recreation
medicine and food
I give you my children
reach deep into your memory
Remember me and find the will to change.
Reflection
Reflection
When I think of climate change and pollution, I think of humans carelessly destroying something they have forgotten they need so much. Our actions affect the sea, whether they are as complex as an oil spill or as simple as driving in a car. We need to be reminded of how much we need the ocean and also how much the ocean needs us. My poem is voiced from the perspective of the ocean. The ocean is begging us to remember her. As I wrote this poem, I thought of everything she gives us — food, recreation, oxygen, carbon dioxide absorption, transportation, and even medicine. The ocean remembers us. Are we willing to remember it?