Ode To The Plastic Ocean

Ode To The Plastic Ocean

written by: Unna Chokkalingam

I am a manta ray
Forty years of swimming these bays
Now my diet has far more variety
Not just multi-coloured fish
But lots and lots of plastic.

I am a green sea turtle
Twenty years of floating along
Nibbling seaweed and singing my song
And now I look so fancy and gorgeous
With my new fishing rope accessories.

I am a clown fish
Yes, those stripy Nemos you see in the aquarium
Life in the ocean is not so boring anymore
Now I can swim and hang out
With my bobbing bottle and drinking straw friends.

I am a humpback whale
Fifty and still cruising the seas
Now, why is it that I feel so heavy and lethargic?
Could it be the heaps of plastic
Sloshing around inside of me?

I am a bottlenose dolphin
I am still young at heart
I love to leap and play
Through and around the plastic hoops and bags
Of my constantly-refitted ocean gym.

I am a young octopus
In the prime of my life looking for a new company
I have big googly eyes and look really cool
Especially now with my new clothing
Of baby diapers and plastic festoons.

I am a Homo sapiens
Fit and tanned and strong
I love to snorkel and dive in the oceans
And see the much-enhanced coral reefs
Teeming with luminous fish
And lots and lots of pretty plastic.

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• About
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Unna Chokkalingam

Dr. Unna Chokkalingam was born in South India in 1965. She wears several hats in pursuit of her numerous passions. She holds a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Chennai in India, a Master’s in Forestry from the University of Massachusetts in the USA, and a PhD in Forestry from the University of Maine in the USA. She is a senior forestry expert, researcher, project manager and scientific writer with over 25 years of experience in the forestry and natural resource field. She recently became accredited as a mediator with the London School of Mediation, and looks forward to exciting new challenges in conflict resolution while continuing to work as a freelance forestry consultant. Finally and most importantly, she is a budding creative writer and these are her first attempts to share some of her thoughts and writings.

Latest posts by Unna Chokkalingam (see all)

• Ode To The Plastic Ocean - March 26, 2019