By Kamala Sankaram (b. 1978)
Kivalina is a small Inuit village of only 1.9 square miles, located on a barrier island in Alaska. The rising sea level threatens to submerge the village, its people, and their culture.
This work was written for Duo Cortona and premiered in 2014.

Lyrics
The sea rises.
Rises up.
The sea is just behind the door.
And we are weary.
Weary.
Weary from watching and waiting.
The sea rises.
Rises up.
The sea is lapping at our toes.
The earth is weary.
Weary.
Weary of fighting our battles.
She melts away, releases the swirling blue, and the sea rises.
Rises up.
Beneath, Agloolik waits.
And he is hungry.
Hungry.
Hungry to swallow the world.
This was my home.
This was my home.
This was my home.

Credits
from Sea Tangle: Songs from the North, released December 21, 2016
Maren Montalbano, mezzo-soprano
Rebecca Harris, violin