My Ocean- Heritage Week 2026 “The Sea” Prose.
Video transcript
Waterford, we have the best seasides in the country, so anyone who has never been to Waterford, Waterford City is only the start, don’t take, for instance, someone says to you go to Tramore, you can go to Tramore, enjoy Tramore, but there’s a lot of small, small coves all the way to Tramore, all the way to Cork, and anyone that’s going down there, just doddle it on, no one is going to disturb you, and enjoy the coastline.
In any case, I get down to this. This is only something I done last night in a hurry.
If you live by the sea, you see what dangers are there. You also realise all senses—sight, you can see what’s happening out; hearing, you can hear what’s happening; smell, smell of the salt water; and the taste, when you’re out swimming, you’ll get it.
And danger. We have invited the destruction of the sea. Waste, waste thrown on the strands, polluting our rivers that run into the sea. Polluting, polluting our sea.
One, oil spillage. Two, untreated waste of all sorts. And three, plastic.
Sorry about that.
Sun, sea, sand, and shells, that’s our seaside.
Two, check the tide, whether it’s in or out when you get down. Check if there’s a lifeguard on duty. Flag for safety. Make sure there is more than one person together at all times.
Where is it safe to swim? And when is it safe to swim?
Do not use anything that endangers your… such as floatable boats. Children now have an awful lot of boats that are not better than balloons. Made of plastic, or a floatable balloon, or maybe a crocodile that they have now, it’s like a balloon that floats, or any other object that floats, without paddles.
Supervision is a must. Is there a current around here? No. Depth, never go beyond your depth. Make sure there is a life ring.
Everyone likes the sea. Sun, sea, sand, waves, fish, mackerel, codling, salmon, periwinkles, oysters, cockles, dillisk, sprats, pollock, prawns, crab, and lobster. They’re all in the sea, and we have enjoyed them for a long time.
What do we know that we can’t talk about? Well, I’m sorry. Nuclear waste by the governments, plastic that is now to the environment. Over the years, chemicals that poison our rivers and fish. Pollution kills. One, it comes by air; it’s liquids and solids. AI, as we know now, has come in now, and we have to accept it.
More ocean than land. If it can be made of plastic, it can be made of timber. Plastic kills fish. Timber is friendly and can be recycled back to the ocean.
In the sea, where people are, look out for jellyfish if in the area. Do not touch them, or let animals anywhere near them. Make sure there are people near when out swimming, as people do get into difficulty, and “Help!” is the cry out loud. Flags, blue or red, indicate safety. And if possible, a responsible person on the lookout at all times.
If tide is in, then it carries things in. If tide is going out, then it carries things out.
Everyone likes the sea.
Again, I must estimate, what do people go… You have gardeners, which can go down to the seaside. We have, uh, what… seaweed! But seaweed is better for your garden than anything you can buy in the garden centre. It has phosphorus, potassium, and nitrogen. And with shells, if you break them up, then you have calcium as well.
The sea is a beautiful place, and our strands—we have the best strands in the world. We’ve got a great summer this year, and I hope everyone enjoyed the summer at the seaside. Thank you very much.
Hilda O'Grady
