Thalassophile
Sellersville, PA
2021, Senior, Poetry & Spoken Word
The ocean, an extensive accumulation of salted water,
she’s a holder of memories, A beautiful mystery,
A keeper of secrets, protector of life; provider of oxygen.
Her waves; a sympathy of chaos, and clashing calamity;
with intensities unexplored; unmatched by humanity,
powerful enough to flood earth itself,
and to sink sailing ships and submerge lost cities,
with mountain ranges greater than the Andes themselves.
Each creature on earth; cultivated by her gist,
generations thrive adrift her sapphire seas,
a red string of creation binding masses of entities.
Evermore connecting her and I together;
blood bound forever no matter how long time passes.
When I first met her, barely a kid,
She sang her seductive siren song to me
A captivating and unique melody.
For she is an entrancing tempest of trickling tides.
I was greeted by her with the gentle touch of waves tickling my tiny toes,
coaxing me to go deeper within her depths.
So, I began to tread lightly, like peddling a bicycle;
Soon, too far out, unable to hear any warning.
Adorning over my newfangled freedom,
for a second, I felt as if I was flying,
as weightless and carefree as a bird in the wind,
gently soaring higher through the sky,
without a single worry in the world,
an ambience of euphoria and ecstasy
a small slice of heaven on Earth.
Until I was ambushed by her untamable underside,
a surging tide like a hand dragging me down,
A thousand pounds of pressure forced onto my small shoulders
Struggling as my small lungs yearned for a single breath of air.
Saltwater swamping through my sinuses,
slowing drowning during a dangerous dance of death,
I compelled my collapsing cadaver to move forward.
Despite stumbling over an endless steady surge,
I looked back as her white caps pummel the land.
Now alert to her brutish billows,
she answers back, softly kissing the sand, enticingly sweet.
Her terrifyingly unpredictable, diabolic demeanor revealed,
for there’s no such thing as true peace in the world,
while she tricks and lures with her schemes, I return back again never less.
Always enchanted by her bewitching ways,
a femme fatale of frightfully, fascinating opaque sea.
Even now, I will forever be insane;
For I am a passionate crazed, thalassophile.
Reflection
Reflection
Ever since I was little, I’ve adored water, especially the ocean. In my poem, I wanted to convey my love for the ocean, as well as own unique experience with water. Whether or not we realize it, each of our lives revolve around the ocean. The ocean helps to regulate Earth’s temperature, feed the world, and is connected to Earth’s entire supply of water. To be honest, I really didn’t think that my voice would make that much of a difference. However, the more I’ve learned about sea level rising, the more I have come to realize how much every voice matters. One of the reason why I chose to participate in the Ocean Awareness Contest is that the next generation of children have the chance to make their own special connection to the ocean. If we don’t act as soon as possible to fight climate change, the ocean as we know it will be gone forever. To people who view my spoken word or read my poem “Thalassophile,” I urge them to think about their own connection to water and how the devastating effects of climate change will change it.