the sea whisperer
Jacksonville, FL
2021, Junior, Poetry & Spoken Word
they call her the sea whisperer because she speaks to the waters
she understands their pleas in a way we can’t
svelte fingertips kissing the waves, palms longing to hold them
she glows with passion, dulled only by a clouding hourglass clasped around her neck
time ticks down the memory of the sea life, she’d say
she spoke the word temporary as if it were slander
because each turn of the hourglass matters more than the last
too many temporaries add up to forever
(three seconds.)
fins dancing through the rhythm of the ocean / sunshine and seaweed swaying in harmony to
soundless music / a blissful unawareness blanketed with blue
(two.)
the dance skids to a stop / sudden silence / a flash of net, ragged and tattered from the world
above / vicelike grip upon scales
(one.)
rush of waves / roaring from all around / air wound up within / a twisted sort of burn / a cry that
could never escape
(zero.)
somewhere offshore, the hourglass freezes
golden tears drifting to rest
yet her work is left unfinished
(what else had she experienced? what pain did she understand?)
they called her the sea whisperer because she spoke the language of humanity
perhaps a little more fluently than we knew
in her wake she left timeless ferocity and a dire challenge
cupped between sandy coastlines, drifting through the crevices
quieted to a whisper we strain to decipher
hush. if we listen closely, we can hear her words
after all, if we don’t have a sea whisperer, we learn the language ourselves.
Reflection
Reflection
Through my research, I learned about the tonnes of waste discarded into our ocean each year. It was frightening to realize that sea life could have a memory tainted with harm caused by our own human race. Situations that seem meaningless or temporary, like littering a simple plastic bottle, add up to deadly pollution. Yet we, the cause of such problems, are the only ones who can stop and prevent them. In my poem, I wanted to highlight the “point of view” of the waters, and the message of urgency. It cannot be the job of one person to take responsibility, but rather a collective effort made through unity—because change waits for no one. I will personally continue to make an effort to spread awareness, whether it is with through writing or otherwise, and I wish to inspire others to do the same. There may be no such thing as a sea whisperer, but through my poetry, I hope to help give the ocean a voice.