Sally Bliumis-Dunn: Beaked Whales Should Not Be Spotted Near a Coast

Not buoyed by the ocean
its own weight
 
will crush its lungs and heart,
just a matter of time.
 
We wait for the rescue sling
and high tide to return, 
 
the few of us, crowded in the enormous stench,     
the whale, hauling air inside 
 
the diminishing holds of its lungs.
Low tide and all we hear 
 
is the whale’s terrible breathing, 
its body drying out
 
except near its blowhole
which spews a few droplets 
 
on each exhalation
and makes the round vent shine
 
like a tiny halo. 
Other than that, the whale
 
lies on the sand like a long dark slab
with small white bursts 
 
like distant stars.
And for one moment this beaked whale 
 
is a window on some other galaxy,
before there were any humans,
 
to watch a creature dying.
 
 
 

Copyright 2020 Sally Bliumis-Dunn