Waves That Carry Us

I am honored to be the recipient of the Notable Award for my film submission in Bow Seat’s 2021 Ocean Awareness Contest, selected from nearly 6,000 global entries. The theme that year was Water Rising and we were challenged to create a piece that highlights our interconnection with water, and that underscores the need to conserve this vital resource.

Waves That Carry Us

Waves crash against the shore at different speeds and strengths
Showing the ocean’s emotions like ours

The flow of the waves are like how we flow everyday

Water, hearing the waves, feeling it against our skin, seeing it rise up
Watching it fall again

Water is connected to me
It’s connected to you
It’s connected to every living thing and environment

Water matters

It doesn’t deserve to get mistreated the way we sometimes treat one another

Treat the oceans like family and protect them
Just like how you protect your family

Defend them like how you try to defend someone that doesn’t deserve certain punishments

The oceans advocate for themselves 
But we need to advocate for them too, like how we advocate for our race, culture, and who we are

Water has been with us all along, from our mother’s womb to once we leave this earth

Water depends on us, and we depend on it

Water helps not only us as a human species but also all of the other species

Since the oceans help us so much, we should help them

Clean the ocean like it is your home
No one likes to live in trash

If we all help and take action
The waves will carry us to a better future

—

Poem written by: Micah Chan
Drone Operator: Micah Chan
Editor: Micah Chan
Drone model: DJI Mini 2
Music: evokemusic.ai
Sources: Vox, The Oceanpreneur, North Shore Shark Adventures, 5gyers.org, Healthline, National Ocean Service