The Little Mermaid (Part One)

Transformed Hans Christian Anderson's short story of the little mermaid into a ballad poem for my A level coursework. It's very long so if you get to the end of it, a cookie for you. x

The Little Mermaid

Down below the waves where the sea folk live
Where the plants grow on the ocean floor
Where the fish play instead of the birds
And there's no such thing as fighting or war

In the deepest spot of the ocean
Is the grand palace of the sea king
He had six and lovely daughters
Who would so enchantingly sing

The six princesses were beautiful girls
But the youngest was the loveliest sight
Eyes such a deep blue and hair so red
And a smile so gorgeous and bright

But like her sisters she had no feet
But a shimmering aqua fish tail
As beautiful as the angel fish
And as strong as the great blue whale

Outside the palace were stunning gardens
Where all the flowers grew with pure love
And when the sea was calm and quiet
You could see the sun shining up above

Each princess had a small charming plot
Where she could grow flowers, plants and trees
Plant vines, place statues, a coral reef
She could decorate how she pleased

The youngest had an unusual plot
And she spend all of her free time there
With a statue of a handsome prince
Who received all of her love and care

The grandmother told the little mermaid
"The day that you reach the age fifteen
You'll be able to rise up from the ocean
And see great things that you've never seen"

The youngest had to wait five long years
For her turn to see the sun drenched land
Feeling so wistful when her sisters spoke
Of the wonders they'd seen and found

The eldest spoke of the cities and towns
Where all of the lights twinkled like stars
She spoke of the music and ringing bells
And the commotion from the motorcars

The second spoke of the pretty sunset
Painting the clouds red and pink in the sky
She watched the swans fly toward the sunset
With a contented and happy sigh

The third sister was the boldest one
She swam up a river to a quiet creek
Where she saw some children splashing about
Who saw her and ran, too scared to speak

The fourth one was not so venturesome
And she stayed far away from the shore
She played with the dolphins and porpoises
Until she was too tired to play anymore

The fifth sister was the next one to go
In the winter time with the snow and ice
She saw countless, luminous ice bergs
And she rode atop the biggest one twice

The sisters took great delight in swimming
Up to the surface and feeling so free
But they always became nostalgic for home
And longed to be back beneath the sea

On evenings when they rose up together
The youngest sister had to stay behind
But a mermaid has no tears to cry with
So it just looked like she did not mind

But at long last she reached the age
Where she could climb up to the surface
The sun had set and the air was fresh
It was such a calm and peaceful place

The little mermaid saw a ship sail by
Where there was cheerful music and more
And fireworks bursting up in the sky
Each one as bright as the one before

On the deck was a very handsome prince
Whose birthday it was on that lively night
But suddenly a storm blew over the sea
And all of the crew on board gave fright

Waves rose high and the dark clouds gathered
Forks of lightning flashed in the distance
The ship couldn't handle the angry sea
And the main mast snapped in an instance

The little mermaid saw the peril
Each time the lightning cracked and flashed
She tried to help out the best she could
But the whole entire ship was smashed

The princes eyes remained tightly shut
As the little mermaid kissed his brow
When she heard voices coming toward her
She swam away, what would happen now?

She watched as the prince regained consciousness
And smiled at everyone gathered around
But he never smiled across at her
So she sank down sadly without a sound

She'd always been melancholy and quiet
But now she would not even smile or sing
When her sisters asked what she saw above
She wouldn't tell them a single thing

Many times she visited the palace
Where she had left her beloved prince
But she always returned feeling upset
Because she never caught a single glimpse

Finally she told her eldest sister
Who told her what she needed to know
Hand in hand, they swam to the surface
And her sister showed where she should go...

(To Be continued...)

*Gem* ©