The Salt in her Voice
The myth says mermaids sing to lure sailors to their death. But why? The ocean is huge. Only 5 percent has been discovered by man. Why would a creature of the sea with that much space to roam ever care about the fate of men on ships?
The answer, as it turns out, is not a simple one at all.
The truth about the myth is older than the tides. Long ago before the first ship ever cut across the surface, the sea made a pact with the sky. The sky would take the souls of the drowned. Anyone who died in storms or any quiet accidents of the deep would have their soul lifted upward to the Heavens while the bodies would remain below, feeding the oceans endless hunger. The greedy sea however wanted more souls than the sky would claim. So it created mermaids. It gave them beautiful voices woven from currents and moonlight. It commanded them to sing. "Bring forth the ones who float where they should sink." it instructed them.
So they did.
They never killed out of malice but out of obligation. They sung to summon, not to seduce. A mermaid's voice could loosen the tether between the body and soul, making any man step willingly into the water. The sea would take the body and the sky would take the soul. Balance maintained.
Comments (7)
Now that is the bitter truth!
Ah, the cost of making them real, of finding them out in flesh & blood. Is there any price we would not pay or, in contrast, its cost be anything we could possibly afford?
truth!
Excellent poem portraying today
Dear Ms. Kelli - Whew, I have so much trouble keeping up with you but always my pleasure to do so. btw; having money just gives you one less thing to worry about; but I just don't GiT what's going on. Jay
Sounds like life to me.
Great Haiku!