It’s quite the sight to behold, this St Lawrence estuary
where inquisitive pregnant women loll in the water —
but seriously, be quiet, watch your motor mouths —
they’re irritated by the transient noise crossing the sounds.
Yes, they liquid beautiful in those dark blue waters
but mind your place and keep a shotgun handy …
in case of bears! silly. (What were you thinking?)
Not really the typical regimen of folic acid and supplements
these pregnant women’s diet is as varied as their habitats
hmm … how about some arctic cod? too bland?
may I interest you in some marine worms? Umm, yes …
would it help if they came in flavours of orange, grape, and cherry
No? how about a crustacean? you know, like some soft-shelled crab
served with a side of salmon, char or squid?
I personally think they’re foodies — I mean just listen:
I love their voices when they feed gleefully
gosh, these women make food itself moan with their
chirps, croaks, burps and grunts … even a moo.
Yes, it is surprising to read that pregnant women mate
in spring time, no less — so men, lock your doors I say —
and you might do to hire a full-time midwife — trust me
’cause with this particular pod, gestation can reach 14 months
ouch — no wonder those newborns are called calves
given the inch of fat they come bearing
but take care of these majestic maternal creatures
what we put into the water and air Brita’s can’t remove
as these pregnant women are found with a horrible
array of cancers and ulcers from PCBs and DDTs
that ring the arctic waters in which they swim and feast
ah, such beauty in those waters we should protect
so take a picture, shift your gaze, and let’s talk seals now.

∞

Submitted as part of “National/Global Poetry Writing Month” (#NaPoWriMo #GloPoWriMo).

Today’s prompt:  Day Twenty-Four:  “Today’s (optional) prompt is a fun one. Find a factual article about an animal. A Wikipedia article or something from National Geographic would do nicely – just make sure it repeats the name of the animal a lot. Now, go back through the text and replace the name of the animal with something else – it could be something very abstract, like “sadness” or “my heart,” or something more concrete, like “the streetlight outside my window that won’t stop blinking.” You should wind up with some very funny and even touching combinations, which you can then rearrange and edit into a poem.”

Author’s Note: inspiration for this poem from p.904 of the December 1988 issue of National Geographic and the story “Whales: an era of discovery.”

30 Poems in 30 Days

All text and photography © Dale Schierbeck

…. more of my original Poetry on EatsWritesShoots here.