Personal        GREAT AMERICAN WHALE Some say they saw him off the Alaskan Coast, Breaching in the cold waters of the Arctic Sea. Others say they saw him in the Gulf of Mexico, Lobtailing about the Florida panhandle. I first saw him at the Natural History Museum. He spanned half a mile from tip to tail, And weighed more than ten thousand pounds. His skin was tight, stretched smooth and sleek. He had massive, invincible jaws, Satiated with stout, salient, scintillate teeth. The Great American Whale. Then one day I saw him for real, from a fishing boat, By The island of the Great Seal. He was playing, putting on a show. He swam at top speed, up to twenty-five knots, Thrusting his flippers downward, He propelled himself out of the water, Smoothly landing on his back The people on the vessel, they cheered, for he was The Great American Whale. Shortly after, an old, rusty, rundown ship showed up, And the whale prepared to breach again, But as he thrust his huge body out of the water A lead harpoon surprised him in the head, Spilling his slimy whale brains out into the ocean. The crowd, they applauded and laughed with evil grins, Watching the whale flip his flimsy fins, With his final breath of existence. This was the end. "He'll make good fertilizer, pet food and soap" They said! But I didn't listen, because he was The Last Great American Whale. Copyright © 1991 Martin Raska - All rights reserved