Today’s prompt was to write a poem in the form of a newspaper article you wish would come out tomorrow.

I’m not sure this was the idea they had in mind, but I wrote a poem from an NPR news report that came out this morning.

Let’s just say it’s my twist on the subject. ☺️

Open Your Eyes

The quake and tsunami 
contaminated water, 
crippled plants. 
next summer, they
will run out of space 
for wastewater.

Environmental groups 
remain skeptical 
of broken promises, 
of 20,000 dead or missing, 
of empty assurances 
of safety.

The danger is real;
oceanic release imminent.
Protestors rally
on uninhabitable land.
The black rockfish
tells the story in its flesh.

Don’t worry,
the diluting effects 
of the vast ocean 
will neutralize toxins.
Don’t worry, 
poison won’t seep 

into our shores. 
Anyway, tritium only
slightly increases 
the risk of cancer—
just a tiny little plop
of poop in your dinner.

Go ahead, eat up!
Enjoy! Who cares 
if it poisons someone 
else’s fish? I guess 
that life and water 
don’t matter to everyone.

Some express 
deep regret—
so sorry 
your life 
is threatened 
by our greed.

We are so sorry, 
but we...
we don’t see 
any other way,
we just don’t.
see. 

-A Draft by Carla Jeanne Picklo Jordan

Let me know what you think in the comments below. Share the love, write a poem, appreciate a good friend. Each moment is a new beginning.