This Unlikely Suicide

I am the only beached whale in Indiana.

Baked.

Fried.

Deflated; defeated

yet liberated.

My transient kind

has ruffled the waves of the shore

and crushed its sand beneath

my 8 ton self.

This unlikely suicide is slow.

I suffocate

as the air from enemy lungs

evaporates my skin

and peels away

my desire for my journey

through the willowy waters of memory.

I chose this death.

I used my enormous fins

to propel my body to this grave

until my belly was rubbed raw

by the gritty footprints

of sun-kissed children

and red faced lovers.

The commotion of the sea overwhelms me;

I simply must give it up.

My tortured, peanut soul

is loosing momentum.

I am a predator to her children

so the sea has cast me away

with violent care and chilly stares.

I lose patience

and throw myself to the mercy

of land unknown.

Death could be the ultimate wave

and I already have a tan.

November 12, 2010