Animals on the Coast of Maine

The Puffins

So small are they, so small to try

And brave the stormy sea and sky.

So far, so far from shore they fly,

No harbor rest, but in their dreams…

Years pass by, long silent years,

Until each lonely, dreaming bird

Awakes to hear the call once more,

The song that draws them home at last…

A dreaming song that sings:  “Come rest.

Come nest and nestle on safe shores.

Call rockbound coastlines home once more.”

And yet, the song, the dream goes on.

In time, they rise to dare the skies.

Again, they leave safe shores behind

To sail rough seas and touch the sky.

So small they seem, yet not their dreams,

Their soaring puffin dreams that rise and rise into infinity…

For in dreams they know that all, all can fly…

Harbor Porpoises

Swimming and diving and leaping and flying,

We’re tumbling under and over the waves.

The Whale

So deep, so deep,

The shadows underneath—

Gliding, grey leviathans.

They follow us,

Or do we follow them?

Whale and wond’ring Man?

Their swift uprisings

Take our breath away,

Breaching high above the waves…

As from our small craft,

We look up at them…

Whale and wond’ring Man.

Soon they will dive down…

Taking one, deep breath 

Before they sound,

Hiding from our eyes.

Will they rise

Spouting melodies?

Songs that we might comprehend?

Will we ever

Sing together?

Wandering Whale…

Wondering, wondering Man?

We are climbing and cresting and falling and splashing,

We’re one with the sea and we’re one with the air.

Ever swift, never ceasing, our tempo increasing,

We race with the tide as it runs to the shore,

Playing tag with the waves and the wind and the sun

In a dance that will never be over and done.

Blue sea…  blue sky… 

We fly…    (we) fly…

Sky to sea and sea to sky.

We fly between blue sea and sky…

We fly…    (we) fly…

Is it sea, or is it sky                           

Don’t know, don’t care       

We fly, we fly, we fly