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Sometimes I leap with joy
at being an ancient swimmer
in the mighty sea.
My body is as old as time,
my brain encompassing
all that lived
before man's history.
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I see you coming,
the energy
of your vibrations
telling me
those of you
who come in peace,
and those others
I must flee.
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Though hundreds of years
of slaughter
lie between us,
I still approach your boat
knowing no harm you mean us
Our brains are large,
our wisdom so much
greater.
We know those
who come to kill
will not awake
till later.
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Though our panic and sorrow
are extreme
in the time of killing,
to trust those
who come in peace,
we are still willing.
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I wish we knew
each other's language,
to share
the knowledge
of my pod.
I look at you
through one of the
ancient eyes
of God,
the words
I cannot speak,
to me, so clear,
you humans are unable yet
to hear.
Listen
to my mournful song,
of how your species
is imperiling this earth.
I see
our future
intertwined -
we sink or swim
together:
death or birth.
I start
my long migration
up the coast
with a baby
of my own.
Like any mother,
I pray she and I
will both survive
long enough
for me to see her
fully grown.
Hannah's Transforming Fridays at Real Toads asks us to speak as a resident of the scrub forest of certain areas. I chose the Baja Peninsula, given my recent focus on the plight of the gray whales.
I love whales. This is so moving, Sherry... especially the ending, very thought-provoking!
ReplyDeleteVery cool choice of subject, Sherry. Whales are fascinating.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful voice of the whale. Did one sing this to you, Sherry?
ReplyDeleteSouthern Right Whales congregate in the cold waters of the Cape too! How clever of you to choose an aquatic animal associated with the Mediterranean biome.
ReplyDeleteSo nice Sherry and sad. I love whales, wish I knew their language too. You honor them well with your writing.
ReplyDeleteI once saw a dead whale washed up on the Baja shore, and your poem impressed me with the whale's knowledge and its willingness to trust humans, whose history would surely indicate their unworthiness.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite part is
"we sink or swim
together:
death or birth."
Luv, K
You have managed to write the voice of the whale beautifully, Sherry!!
ReplyDeleteYou bring your reader right into this face-to-face moment...oh, my...the eyes of this beautiful ancient wisdom...Sherry...I'm SO glad you chose this POV...this voice needs to be heard. ♥ Thank you.
ReplyDeleteIf I were another species, I would hire you to speak for me. My favoriut stanza is the one with pod/God and clear/hear. That voice of God and wisdom always give me pause. And like Jesus, the whale bears the cross and the sacrifice.
ReplyDeleteWonderful poem Sherry of one of the noblest creatures on the planet. I wonder if we could understand would we take the time to listen.
ReplyDeleteI look at you
ReplyDeletethrough one of the
ancient eyes
of God,
Yes, it MUST be like that.
I am lucky to go to the Pacific every year, and have many times spotted whales, dolphins and porpoises in the wild. Last year, a pod of dolphins body-surfed the same waves as me. These creatures are glorious. You honor them nicely here.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.kimnelsonwrites.com/2013/01/20/from-the-other-side/
I love the beauty and majesty of whales. You have given them a voice, and the ending really strikes the chords of my heart.
ReplyDelete"I look at you through one of the ancient eyes of God." That is pure. That is true. That is poetry!
ReplyDelete