The Unwilling Jailer

By Kilhah St Fort

Blue depths
Holder of euphoria and life
I enshroud the senses

Sometimes I am unmoving
Shy, a bit cautious
The wind nudges me forward gently
My fingertips graze over hot grains
Before I must retreat

Other times
A heat swells in the pits of my stomach
Excitement floods my veins

I stand tall onto the tips of my toes
Trembles overcome me
I reel forward
Curled up into myself
Cold water rushes down

Salty taste, cool touch
Within me lives
The gems of this earth
Great white bears
Rest on icy blocks
Forming homes for their young

Humans enjoy my shallow waters
Laughing, splashing.
I wash away worry
Ease seeping deep into their bones

Yet, something creeps in
Poison-coated claws sink into me
Infecting, tainting

The icy blocks are its first victims
I cannot speak when they cry
Their bodies lessening with each passing day
I cannot move when I bloat
Overfilling with their remains
Shoves and howls

Replace nudges and laughter
Trees snap
      Against the wind
He runs in circles
Dragging me along

My falls turn hazardous
Wood splints underneath the pressure
I tear through the homes of my humans
Furniture
   Pictures
    Memories
Destroyed

I wrap around their wrists and ankles;
Watery chains weigh down
Until they gasp, claw, and struggle
Their freedom is stolen

I am silenced
As my form distorts
As I slap shackles on the innocent
As fingers point, turning the blame onto me
As I become jailer of a prison
Soaked in blood and tears
Founded by a force born from my accusers

Who are they to declare me the villian?
They are the ones who pollute this earth
Burning materials without thought

They say the pains aren’t real
“Climate change? Oh, that’s just a theory.”
I scoff

If it’s not real, why do I feel the symptoms of an incoming epidemic.
My body aches, my knees shake
Stomach twisting and knotting
Cotton stuff head
Pressure building
A storm is brewing

But hey,
The Unwilling Jailer
What could I know, I’m just an ocean.

I’ll shut my eyes and cover my ears
I will play my part
Become the horrible, unfeeling ocean
And watch as our beautiful earth is pulled apart
By her children.