The Ocean Speaks in Empty Shells
Leola, PA
2020, Senior, Performing Arts
On a cool day in a gray nameless light
You find yourself on the beach
You step across the stones and seaweed fingers
The green crabs in the tide pool glass
There are footprints in the sand,
Footprints in the stones, in the foam
Footprints in the sky above your head
Clouds trampled in celebration of our lack of understanding
Ever since you were a child
You felt a pain warm as the water
Climbed graphs like Mountain slopes
A kind of altitude sickness, setting in
Water rose as you fell
As you fell
A herring gull drops a clam from high in the air
To the blacktop below its wings,
The parking lots spread out for miles
Like platters to break things on
Celestial bodies look on from the dark,
Wondering how their sister in the beautiful dress
Has covered it with stains again
The lines on mussel shells are ocean waves etched in black
We shatter them and line our pockets with the shards
Our outstretched palms are round and flat
Like platters to break things on
And they must all watch us in disappointment as the sun goes down on their torn blue blanket, the ones we say we love but that we never want to help, the hungry we ignore because we act like we’re too busy, like there’s too much going on. But while we talk over the cataclysm, the hurricane waves cry out,
for the ocean always speaks loudest in empty shells.
Catch the ocean winds and ride
From this strange and troubled tide
Say you hadn’t only tried,
You won
Walk the intertidal sand
Drop the splinters from your hand
Home is far beyond the land,
It’s everywhere
It’s everyone
It’s everyone
Reflection
Reflection
This song is an experimental portrayal of humanity’s journey from an uncertain present to a hopeful future. The song begins in 11/8, with an additional four beats at the end of every fourth measure. This creates a restless, almost directionless feel: as a species, we start out confused, wanting to do something about climate change but not knowing where to direct our energy. The piece will require drastic melodic changes to reach a secure and comfortable place. One of these shifts takes place about fifty seconds in, where the song changes to 9/8 and becomes slightly more stable and consonant. After a glimpse of melodic hope, the chaotic 11/8 returns, though, and the vocals become increasingly more distorted. After the spoken lyrics reach their climax, however, the music becomes simpler and calmer, showing our slow realization for the need to take action. The final section, the only portion featuring singing, portrays humanity’s decision to embrace positive change. While melodic motifs remain from the opening, this is by far the most stable section. The song concludes with a flourishing but unresolved violin harmonic: we must continue our journey upwards. The lyrics generally focus on our current inability to take action despite a need to, calling out the listener using second-person perspective. By the end of the song they push the audience to embrace optimism and recognize that to protect our planet, we need to remember the importance of all life it contains, especially in our oceans.