My mother used to tell me
to be careful what I wish for.
Only until I became a mermaid
did I believe her.

When we would go to the beach,
I would dive into the murky blue,
the squishy sand beneath my feet,
the waves stirring in a certain beat.
The sun would blaze down
While the fish lazed around.
My mom would drag me
Back onto the ground
“You can’t be here forever, Marina,”
She would say.
“Come back home with me.”
Oh, how I wished to stay!
On the ride home,
I stroked my wavy, thick hair
As I would tell myself in persuade,
“What a fool to yearn to be a mermaid.”
No longer am I a wannabe,
Because now I am truly one –
The tails and gills
It’s not to be undone.
Here I begin the tale
of a dreamer girl
who got what she wished for
and a little bit more.
It was the second to last
Week of that year of school
I was perched in my chair
Itching beneath my scratchy sweater of wool
I dropped my hand and stroked my hair
“Marina, you’re humming again,”
Pointed out my friend Jennifer
I had no idea, it didn’t occur
In a minute, or two, or three
The bell rang loudly
And the teacher began to hurry
The mob of tenth graders decided to scurry.
I whammed against people
In the crowded, loud hallway
My skin felt drier than sand
My throat screamed for water, for it was like clay
Then I was at the pool
I placed one foot on the side
And kicked off, pushing through the water
Diving deeper, I was surely to glide
When I shot up to the surface,
A boy was facing me
He had seaweed-like eye
But he was no one I could identify
“Hey, Maria,” the boy chirped
“Do you remember who I am?”
He did not notice me freaked out
He went on; his words loving to cram
“Of course you do!
Anyone would remember Merland!”
Then he took a brief pause
“Marina, you were born in the sand!”