The latest wave of sickness in Florida compelled me to rework my book The Uprising Sea and get my message out there. I’ve come to the conclusion that our pandemics are the result of too much environmental pollution. We are made up of mostly water. The health of our water is a reflection of our health.  What we put out we get back, and in the past few months, we’ve learned a lot. We need to keep taking the blinders off if we want a happy future.

Attached is what I hope is the final text for my story.  I added one illustration to this blog, but the book is fully illustrated. I will publish it soon on Amazon.  Enjoy

THE UPRISING SEA

Written and illustrated by Debra Torger

 

I like to go to the deep blue sea, to smell the air and just be.

The sun is warm on my smiling face, the sea breeze fills me up with grace.

If you want to relax, try it and see. The ocean is the remedy.

 

One day I spotted on the sand, a starfish with a pail in hand.

It frowned, shaking its head, muttering “Humans are why my friends are dead.”

I asked “What do you mean? What can I do?” It shouted back “Here, have a bucket of poo!”

 

I saw a ladyfish a moment later, gasping for air and whispering “Hater!

Why do you need to have green grass? Humans are a pain for the bass.”

She drifted ashore and turned on her side, and then the poor ladyfish just died!

 

A pair of serpents in reply sang a haunting lullaby.

A melody of pollution and greed, nuclear war, and people in need.

The sirens sang of men drowning to death. They sang deep sorrows with the fishy breath.

“Death to you! Oh, woe is me!” cried the serpents from the uprising sea.

 

Then a squid or calamari said to me, “You’re going to be sorry!

If you do not stop dumping your waste, when you feast on me, you are in for a taste! Ha!

Now I must return to the ocean because currently there’s a lot of commotion.”

 

In the distance, I could see a mammal in distress…a manatee.

He looked up at me with tears in his eyes as he drifted away to his demise.

I called out “Please tell me, how can I help?” as he coughed up more and more rotten kelp.

 

An overflow pipe spilled a wicked brew into the water that was once blue.

The magical seahorse had no choice but to swim through this mess. It had no voice.

Living or swimming in human poo is not good for me or you.

 

The dolphins I surf with were acting odd and appeared woozy in their little pod.

Sewage spills in the bay will make for all, an unhappy day.

Between our waste and manicured lawns, we are harming the sea life from whales to prawns.

 

A mermaid in black and blue harlequin print was enraged that I still did not take the hint.

“Human!” she shouted “Heed my warning! Clean up this mess or pay the price by morning!

There’s waste in the water, pollution in the air. But look at you, as if you care!

You desecrate the beach from left to right, and from what I can see there is no end in sight!”

We are done with all the pollution on land, while knuckleheads like you come to play on our sand!

 

I kept walking. I did not notice a crab was stalking my every move.

She took me down and said “Listen, clown…

Look at the mess on my nice beach. There is so much to clean, well beyond my reach.

The water is polluted, don’t you see? It’s not healthy for the starfish or me.”

 

And then…as the crab pinched me out of my bubble, I became aware of impending trouble.

 

An octopus, an angry one, interfered with my day of fun.

She stuffed my mouth with stinky kelp, shouting “What does it take for you to help??

Silly human – listen to me! Clean up the mess you’ve made in my sea!”

 

She turned away, disgusted and swearing, after squirting black ink on what I was wearing.

 

From the water, a turtle crawled over to me and said “Human, it is up to you to protect the sea.

You can start by removing this ring from my fin and go place it in a recycling bin.

Now that you are truly aware, please do something to show you care.”

 

The turtle paused but I could not stay, so I never heard what she had to say.

I had an octopus stain on my sleeve, and by this time I was ready to leave.

I ran home from the beach that day as seagulls ushered me on my way.

 

That night when I went to bed, a horrific nightmare filled my head.

Repeated visions of the day circled my mind and would not go away.

Dead animals calling me by my name, warning me of a dark end game.

It was now clear that problems like pollution do not just disappear, and we need a solution.

 

But oh no! The next morning an infection started on my ankle, where my skin had parted.

It was sore and red and hot to the touch. From a scratch in the water? Way too much!

I had a slight fever, sick as could be. It would not be a day at the beach for me.

 

I rushed to the clinic, but it was too late. So, I hobbled back home unsure of my fate.

I recalled the dream from the previous night, now with waves of a massive reality bite.

I had an infection and it would take a while before I could swim or even smile.

All this time I missed the ocean, now closed for cleanup, amid sad emotion.

 

While I was healing, I started a farm, without those chemicals that cause us harm.

Chickens, a goat, and honeybees now live on my farm of banana trees.

If I am out of spices and I need to buy more, I ride my bike to the grocery store.

Nothing puts me in a better mood than eating my own home-grown food.

 

Still, in my dreams, the fish haunted me, sending reminders of the crisis at sea.

In the wind I could hear their voices – Tell the humans to make better choices.

I wrote a book to tell their story, full of color, and allegory.

The humans finally decided to change when things became even more deadly and strange.

We made radical reforms in plastic use, chemical dumping, and water abuse.

We overcame the powers that be when we learned of their intentions for you and me.

We got rid of the leaders who treat us like fools. We took back our power and made new rules.

 

The surviving marine life took a long time to accept humans after so much crime.

Slowly but surely the sea life returned, after some hard lessons the humans learned.

Humans had to learn to be humble. To respect all life, or else we all crumble.

We discovered that what we throw in the sea, eventually comes back to you and me.

 

After that unforgettable day on the beach, I hope that all beyond my reach,

Meaning all of us- everyone will respect the ocean while having fun.

Now, let us celebrate and dance to the beat of the Starfish Song with happy little feet.

 

I am a starfish, here I go

Watch me spin around on my toe

I was born in the deep blue sea

Come into the water and play with me

 

The end