The Last Leviathan
By Andy Barnes
An Animal Rights Poem from All-Creatures.org

All of God's creatures have rights, a fact that most people don't seem to recognize. This includes both human and non-human animals, but not all of them can speak for themselves.

The Last Leviathan
By Andy Barnes*

My soul has been torn from me, and I am bleeding
My heart is has been rent, and I am crying
All beauty around me fades, and I am screaming
I am the last of the great whales, and I am dying

Last night I heard the cry of my last companion
The roar of the harpoon gun, and I was alone
I reflect on the days gone by, when we were thousands
And I know that I soon shall die, the last Leviathan

This morning the sun arose, crimson in the sky
The ice was the color of blood, and the wind it did sigh
I rose up to take a breath, it was my last one
From the burn came the roar of death, and now I am done

Now that we're all gone, and there's no more hunting
The big fellow is no more, there's no use lamenting
Which race will be next in line, all for the slaughter
The elephant or the seal, or your sons and daughters

*Andy Barnes/Friendly Overtures Ltd., MCPS, UK)
From TORNADO by Rory Block


Return to: Animal Rights Poetry