Mermaid Song

Poem by Anhai Roantree

I gather rocks and 
line them up like 
treasure
here on the seafloor. The 
sirens sing sad songs
and I
clamp my hands over
             my ears
to stop them from
casting their spell on me. 
Here in this world
I am fresh 
as a babe. Here
in this world I am 
newly made. 
I eat this gold 
up like fruitcake 
and I’ll be throwing up
pearls for days.

Anhai Roantree is an undergraduate student at George Washington University. She is a recipient of the Lannon Fellowship, awarded to students demonstrating great promise in and dedication to poetry. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in “Capitol Letters” and “WWPH Writes.”