When Whales Hold Their Breath
When Whales Hold Their Breath
when their flukes go high
then the dive is deep
and their glassy footprints,
ovals of calm sea,
green and disappear.
Boats dawdle
suspended in idle time
until a spume of white rises
and a shout seizes watchers
as the long gray shapes
heave over the waves
and the sucking of air
lets us all again breathe.
Isabel Ferguson