Written for Linda’s prompt at dVerse Poets Poets Pub. She pulls six random quotes from Neruda’s book of questions and asks us to pick one and write a poem about it. I picked “Who sings in the deepest water in the abandoned lagoon?” An ocean lovers and a very amateur ocean biologist, I could not resist.
The Choir
“I try to catch at many a tune Like petals of light fallen from the moon, Broken and bright on a dark lagoon, But they float away – for who can hold Youth, or perfume or the moon’s gold?” Sara Teasdale
who sings in the deepest water in the abandoned lagoon?
in the abandoned lagoon there is a choir singing,
they lift their voices,
that drifts in the wind and waves –
sea turtles and sea horses,
manatees and pink shrimp,
crabs and red fish and pompano.
they drift and forage among the sea grass
and sing their own unique songs.
a sea turtle picks up a bit of sea glass
and deposits it at the edge of the gentle waves,
an offering for those few humans that walk
along the edge of the water.
if you listen
you will hear their voices.
soft and tranquil –
singing for the benign humans
who listen and leave
taking the piece of sea glass in their pocket,
a treasure to be placed on a shelf
catching the sun and bringing back memories
of the songs that only lone creatures can make.
Indian River Lagoon and Pelican Island
kanzen sakura 