Just Out of Reach
(Edges of their Ocean)
Janet Kuypers
08/23/10
was on some tropical island
where tourists go
and saw an inlet along the beach
where they used net walls
to show their trained dolphins
you asked me if I wanted to see the dolphins
I said no
and it made me wonder,
which is worse:
keeping wild sea animals
in total captivity
all of their lives
with man-made ponds
with man-made walls
or training wild sea animals
at the edges of their ocean
putting up man-made walls
right up at the beachfront
giving them their water
so they can look out
at what they’re missing
as we walked away along the beach
I saw a trainer on a platform
guide a dolphin
as it flipped through the air
and I thought
let an infant lick a lollipop
then pull it away
even after they’ve stopped crying
even if they’re used to what they’ve got
all they can do now
is stare at that lollipop
just out of reach
Copyright © 2010 Janet Kuypers.
All rights reserved. No material
may be reprinted without express permission.
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