The filigree of the seas

(Category: Poetry)

The filigree of the seas

Perseus created the coral reefs 

Fighting the sea-monster,

Took Medusa's head out of his bag,

Medusa's eyes, facing down,

Transformed seaweed into coral reefs.

Science tells a duller story.

The myth must be true:

It has beauty.

The sea is warming.

The warming is tormenting the coral reefs.

They, in despair, 

Tear apart,

Piece by piece,

Their colorful dresses.

Looking at them agonizing,

The sea takes pity:

Paints them with watery brushes, 

Until they end as white mausoleums.

They were the filigree of the seas.

Only the rainbow fish of Poseidon,

Could rival their grandeur.

When Perseus created them,

They must have captured the beauty of Andromeda.

They were the filigree of the seas. 

They won't be

The filigree

Of the seas,

Anymore.

They won't be.

Pablo Rodas-Martini

Some of the science behind the poem: 

"Great Barrier Reef ´cooking and dying´ as seas heat up, warn scientists,"  April 2017. 

"Great Barrier Reef suffered worst bleaching on record in 2016, report finds," November 2016. 

"Horrific Great Barrier Reef damage as scientists record first back-to-back years of serious coral bleaching," April 2017. 

Perseus is one of the most famous characters of the Greek myths. The battle against the sea monster to rescue Andromeda appears in most books; however, the creation of coral reefs from seaweed I found only in one sentence of the classic: "The Greek myths", by Robert Graves, in Book 1, Number 73 (Perseus).