Tuesday, May 21, 2019

Poetry Tuesday: "Salty Soup"

While the rest of the nation discusses ever more draconian abortion bills that seem to be zooming through various statehouses, I am still thinking of climate change.  I am concerned about these bills, to be sure, but I suspect that the Supreme Court will not overturn Roe v. Wade.

I think that climate change will shortly command all of our attention, in a way that a cancer diagnosis makes the other daily problems fade.  I'm not sure what I'm expecting first, but the weather report last week of higher daytime temperatures at the Arctic than here in South Florida did grab my attention.

I'm also thinking of some of my friends' Facebook pictures of beautiful beaches and lovely trips in boats.  One day, we'll tell our children about the times when we didn't fear the sea.

I've written about this idea numerous times.  Here's one of my favorite poems that I've written about this idea:




Salty Soup 


Once upon a time, before 
the sea became so enswamped 
with jellyfish, we swam 
in water so clear you could see 
the sandy floor and the salty 
shores beyond the horizon. 

We swam with fish that meant 
us no harm, fish striped 
with jewel-true colors. We swam 
with tanks on our backs 
and an assortment of bulky 
equipment which weighed 
us down on land but helped 
us stay submerged 
in the marine cosmos. 

A strange homecoming, 
even though we couldn’t stay 
without our heavy encapsulations. 
We felt our fluids expand beneath our skin. 
We sank like stones, 
our exhalations bubbling to the surface. 


Once we swam, I tell you, we did. 
We could live by the coast, harvest 
the oceans’ riches, venture 
forth on boats. Once we did not fear 
the sea. Once we swam in such peace 
that we longed to return to the salty 
soup from which we evolved.


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