[Poetry] Ocean's Whisper by Jovina Zion Pradeep

Basking in blue waters,

Bliss the breeze breathes.

Within seashells a history:

Stories of the place where

Life first unfolds.

Rays of sunlight pour in

Through silky waves as

Algae mix shades of phthalo

Green with cobalt blue.

Gritty sand plummets beneath

My feet creating unprecedented

Dunes. Crabs shed their shell

As they grow into independent

Beings of their own, as I

Stand there building

Sand castles. Waves

Crash onto the place where

I wrote my name on the

Beach face leaving me

Astonished at the harbor,

Bedecked with ships of

Cargo that seem to form

A large bird of their own.

Wind blows wavy fractals

Setting at the golden hour;

Its reflection a glimpse

Of the day yet to come,

Documented in its

Rhythmic heart:

Susurration.

Jovina Zion Pradeep is the Youth Poet Laureate of Alameda County (2024-25), an editor at Blossomer Literary Magazine and a junior editor at Polyphony Lit. Her poetry is forthcoming or published at The Wave, Kelp Journal; The Louisville Review, Tri City Voice, Moonstone Arts Center New Voices Anthology, San Francisco Youth Anthology, The Howl, SeaGlass Literary, and The Dungeness Press. When she is not writing, taking photographs or studying, you can find her singing, reading mythology or listening to music.