Hurricane Katrina Poem by Elizabeth Clement

Water snakes around my legs,
I gasps for air
Vehicles lurching down the Mississippi river like streets.
Orange rope,
Holding on tight,
The rope slips,
And I go under the frigid water.
Grabbing, gasping, trying to live.
Screaming, yelling, calling for help,
But no one hears me.
There’s a noise that is constant,
Beep, beep, beep.

My eyes open,
I was,
hoping it was just a bad dream.
But I wasn’t.
I was in a shelter,
I was a hurricane Katrina victim.