Bottom of the sea

 3,711 Total views,  2 Views today

 

By Hawar Moradi

 

Nowadays

when I am walking by the sea, I keep looking at the sun,

That keeps staring back at me.   

 

I see the giant waves coming towards me

I see how they calm down and become smaller,

to finally disappear, when they come very close

to me.

 

I see the many boats,

I see the birds flying in flocks,

I see the fishermen throwing their nets

into this giant blue sea, with no bottom in sight.

 

Hello to you, fisherman,

Your calmness in doing your job makes me shocked,

How can you be so calm?

When you can’t know, what you will bring up,

from the bottom of this mighty sea?

How can you give away the strength?

in your aged hands,

without knowing where it reaches or where it ends.

 

With his aged, wrinkled sunburned face, covered by a grey bird that hides the smile on his face, he looks at me and says, ‘Son;

I am just hoping when I throw my net,

I catch what I caught, sometimes there are some fishes,

other times there is none

All I know is the net to be thrown. Otherwise, I would not be here,

all days long.’

 

He puts his right hand, on his right knee, to get some support to straighten his aged him. I think to myself ‘Has he not seen or heard?’

 

Son, what have I not seen? What have I not heard?

He asks me helplessly, curiously, and seems too curious about the response,

he may get from me

 

‘Fisherman?’ I say but he interrupts me,

apologizing, while he suddenly starts to move his hands

and hastily bringing up his net.

Soon, some tiny fishes begin to crave for air, for life,

near his feet

 

There is no hope; I start to think,

for the humankind in this world

there is no hope I begin to feel

for those on the bottom of the sea.

 

Son, He says

I am aware of what you ask

I long time ago, lost hope in the humankind,

I left the earth and now live on this sea

Communicate only with the fishes that never get a chance to say,

more than a goodbye to me

Because their life ends, as soon as they reach,

This world of me

 

You thought if I have not seen or heard,

Whether I had become a beast on the sea

 

Son, I left that world of yours,

I could not tolerate an existence

In that world

From morning to late at night I talk to the fishes

That is not given a second chance,

To live the life, as they wish

 

One day, when I had thrown my net, the sun was near the edge of my feet.

I brought out my net and there I saw the most beautiful tiny fish looking at me. I hurried up and put her in my hands and poured some water on her to keep her alive. She told me something that broke my heart. That tiny fish said to me that she is happy to die. She is grateful, that she entered my net to get rid of her own life.

 

She told me,

that there was no place for her anymore,

in the bottom of the sea.

She told me that many humans were now

resting in the bottom of the sea.

 

When she had told me all that she begged me to make her wish come true and let her die.

 

Yes, I know what has happened,

and happens.

I heard it, from the tiny fish,

not from the human that keep passing by every day,

without ever waving at me.

 

I said kindly, to the fisherman, ‘Nothing matters to me, of what you tell.

Nothing matters to me, of what you may not tell

I am looking for my daughter that drowned in this sea

And left me all alone, to have a day like this.’

 

You know, fisherman. Many have escaped from their homes

Millions have left the ones, they love.

Thousands have drowned, in this sea on which your boat keeps afloat,

And your net keeps being thrown.

 

Today I forced myself, to come out after the many days, which passed

From the darkness that has been my life, since the day she left.

 

Today I could once again, see the sea

I still wish to think that my daughter is with me.

 

The tears keep running down the cheeks of the fisherman.

I apologize, Fisherman,

please, I am just looking for my daughter.

Maybe one of these days, you may throw your net,

Please let me know if you bring her up,

To life again.