Mother’s Grief

Birth, by it’s very nature,
is an awe inspiring miracle,
the quiet before the storm,
of instinctual care to feed
nurture and protect

but what happens when the clock goes wrong,
a lifetime cut short, unplanned, unprepared
for the loss of life’s precious gift?

Mothers wail, cry out in agony
when the script for life is torn
causing physical pain that never heals.
Other species seem to have
similar reactions report witnesses

off Dana Point who saw a female dolphin 
carrying her calf on her dorsal fin.
Other dolphins were at her side 
guiding her through the seawater. 

Why this display? 

The crew and tourists 
on the boat were somber 
the image so poignant and visceral. 

Doors creaked open then slammed shut,
hues of red and orange 
streaked across the horizon,

visitors picked up their belongings and left the boat
carrying with them the image of that mother dolphin
holding her baby above the surface of the water.

Some posted their videos and photographs
telling their story to families and friends
crying for the heartbreaking loss of life

and for the mother whose grief will never end.