The Dying Sea
Converse, TX
2015, Senior, Poetry & Spoken Word
The ocean, once beautiful, clear and sheer,
Now filthy and tainted, offering death and disease to all who come near,
The fish once swam freely now poisoned and dying,
Birds are sleeked with oil, now stopped flying,
I once sat at the beach and saw a mermaid drag herself to shore,
Oil matted up her dirty hair,
Her gills were stained black, a gaping look her face bore,
Her scales were torn, her face distorted with despair,
The humans had done wrong and due to that she was suffering and suffocating,
They did not see what they did, the effects of what they were advocating,
She lost her luster and shriveled up before me,
What could I do?
Even if I beseeched for aid no one would see,
No one would believe it true.
Reflection
Reflection
My poem is basically about how human activity has polluted the ocean with oil, trash, and radio active wastes. Just because trash or oil or etc. was dumped in the ocean and it cannot be seen does not mean it does not affect other aspects of our life or other creatures, for that matter. Pollution affects the fish which are human food supply, thus if one believes they are unreached by ocean pollution they should re-consider. Before human activity the ocean was a beautiful and majestic place. Now it is dangerous to swim in lakes and lagoons because parasites and toxins are present. The mermaid symbolizes how the pollution affects most sea creatures (I say most because some bacteria and parasites thrive in that sort of environment.), it kills them. The mermaid also symbolizes pollution itself- People do not believe in pollution or its effects such as global warming (Yes, some people do not believe in global warming…) just like most people do not believe in mermaids. The difference between the mermaid and pollution is that pollution has been proven to be ever present. Also, the pollution, unlike the mermaid will not just die out. People need to be more involved with helping the earth and keeping it clean and thriving rather than trashing it up and thinking of more ways to exploit it.