Home
Young Writers Project

Search form

  • Login
  • DONATE
  • CREATE
    • RECENT POSTS
    • THE DAILY READ
    • RECENT VISUAL ART
  • COMMUNITY
    • TINY WRITES
    • ARTSPACE
    • BOOK CLUB
    • WINTER READS!
    • YWP MENTORS
    • YWP ALUMNI ADVISORS
  • CHALLENGES
    • TEENAGER: A writing and visual art contest!
    • WEEKLY CHALLENGES 22-23
    • JOURNALISM CHALLENGES
      • Journalism Project Info
    • THE GREAT ARTISTS CHALLENGE
    • ARTSPACE CHALLENGES
    • THE GREAT POETS CHALLENGE
    • CHALLENGES BANK
    • YWP RESOURCES
    • Weybridge Haiku Contest
  • PUBLICATIONS
    • THE VOICE
    • ANTHOLOGIES
      • ANTHOLOGY 13 VIDEO
    • MEDIA PARTNERS
    • SPECIAL ISSUES: The ELM 2021-22
      • The ELM 2020-21
      • The ELM 2019-20
    • YWP NEWSLETTER
  • ABOUT
    • ABOUT YWP
    • QUICK FAQs
    • HOW THE SITE WORKS
    • RECENT HIGHLIGHTS
    • ANNUAL REPORT 21-22
    • PERMISSION FORM
    • TERMS & CONDITIONS OF USE
    • CONTACT US
  • Donate
  • LOG IN/JOIN
Previous Post
Next Post
Jan 22
poem
NiñaEstrella

uncontrollable

The beckoning whale call.

The canoe, my tongue.

I, the sailor who cannot sail,
simply sits at the mouth and waits,
waits
for the whale
to open its wide galaxy and
exhale 

My lukewarm brain.

The sailor panicks, and,
lured by the scent
of the breath
and the gelt, the dark chocolate guilt,
tumbles overboard and convulses,
trying to drown, drown in
salt and
silt.

If you've ever drowned I think you know what it feels like.

My uncontrollable urge.

I wish I hadn't opened my eyes, because gosh
the saltwater stung
like sun baked fish 
in the freezing sun
and I
the only one
with melting guts and squirming lungs.

The sea rollicked, that poor old sailor, nets only tangled him deeper in the yawn

For if the whale smiled it was lost to darkness,
If the snores of coral woke him, they were swallowed in staleness,
paleness,
uncontrollable wailing,
the sailing,
the canoe wrapped in presents of 
my green tendons, leaping
licking 
the edge of the sand and creeping
forward.

Into nothing. Finding instead the fun of trying too hard was too much,
For the sailor who could not sail.
 

  • NiñaEstrella's blog
  • Sprout
  • Log in or register to post comments
Posted: 01.22.21
About the Author: NiñaEstrella
“If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all.” ― Oscar Wilde
MSG / CONTACT
RECENT LOVES
  • A year (if personified)
  • Measuring my daughter
  • Woman
  • Therapy notes
  • Halfway normal
RECENT COMMENTS
  • gorgeous!!
  • i love this. SO. MUCH. :))
  • i read about jeremiah on tiny
  • i. love. this. so. much.
  • This is so powerful. I love

Other Posts

  • thriller novels and other methods of swinging from chandeliers
    july - tea lights - unfortunate events of spilling red wine - barnes and noble Read more
    in poem 0 Comments
  • for you, for me
    avocados, pears, forget-me-nots.she twirls out a list and smiles.  Read more
    in poem 7 Comments
  • Thither comes a dashing gentleman
    When wind whips my hair and blows it across my face dramatically,  Read more
    in poem 0 Comments

Discussion

Comments

  1. eyesofIris
    Jan 22, 2021

    I love this, especially "the gelt, the dark chocolate guilt," and "they were swallowed in staleness, paleness, uncontrollable wailing, the sailing." There is a really cool rhythm to this. You should read it at the next open mic :)

    • Log in or register to post comments
  1. NiñaEstrella
    Jan 22, 2021

    Thank you! I might!!

    “If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all.”
    ― Oscar Wilde

    • Log in or register to post comments
  • ABOUT
  • DONATE
  • PUBLICATIONS
  • SUBSCRIBE TO NEWSLETTER
  • JOIN/LOGIN
YWP is a creative, online community of teen writers and visual artists. We're based in Burlington, VT, and we welcome young creators from anywhere!
Young Writers Project | 47 Maple St., Suite 216 | Burlington, VT 05401
501(c)(3) nonprofit established in 2006
Contact: Susan Reid, Executive Director: [email protected]; (802) 324-9538