Migration

Once mine, they leave

on the tide,

return to the deep,

swim leagues

to find bright coral

 

born of brilliance.

I watch their freedom dance

 

from the tidal pool.

Late in the sun,

silver minnows swim

like party ribbons,

crabs chase my toes

a sand dollar grows

salty in my palm;

treasures once mined

by my young

who this day

spray their way

to sea

 

leaving me

heart to heaven

body in sand.

The sun falls away.

I stand wondering

how he painted the moon

to bring the tide

and draw it back,

leaving me

 

in the dusk of mourning.

 

The air shifts cool

as velvet curtains

close the night.

Stars rise,

shine on the skin

of new whales

diving again

 

and again

and

again.