The Singing of Whales

My mum is the biggest of them all! I am serious! She is a blue whale and 30 meters long. Obviously, she is record holder of being the largest creature on the planet! One day I will be just as big as she is! Whenever one of the other sea animals asks me what I want to be later in my life, then I always respond the same: “ As big and as strong as my mother! “ By the way, my name is Aserina. And my mother’s name is Marielle. I am her forth child. I’ve already met two of my siblings. One of them is nearly as big as my mother.

At the moment we are on our way north. We want to journey to the arctic sea so we can feast on all the plankton. Then we can swim back into the warmer parts of the ocean. It is my first journey to the north and I am very excited. My mother is telling me great things about the north. Things that are greater than herself. I can’t really believe that actually. But for example, she is telling me that there are the beautiful northern lights which flicker across the night sky. Or all the other whales who will dine with us at this amazing feast. Over and underneath the sea level there are supposed to be gigantic ice sculptures. Nevertheless, for me Marielle is the most gigantic. After all thanks to her I am here to see everything. Besides, she is teaching me so many things. When we get into a storm, and that happens quite often, she taught me to punch my fins onto the surface of the sea. This is the only way how we can communicate in a terrible storm and don’t get lost. Sometimes it is also quite lonely in the big ocean. In the open sea only a few other sea creatures swim close to the surface. You have to dive deeper but we don’t like that very much. Marielle can entertain wonderfully. She is telling me the most adventurous stories about mermaids, sea devils and sea dragons. But it’s most beautiful when my mother starts singing. Her singing grasps the essence and beauty of the sea, the blue sky and the sun. Everything that is dear and important to us my mother expresses in her singing. It is the singing of whales.

 On the day my mother sang for the last time was the day I dived deepest in my entire life. It was a clear and calm sea and except for us no one was around. My mother was just singing about the treasure of sea shells. The pearls, the souls of the ocean. We were swimming just underneath the surface when suddenly, we heard a humming. Then a shadow grew closer who was catching up with us. A buzzing sound then a bang. I smelt something! Something I didn’t smell since I was born. Blood! I looked at my mother and realised terrified that she was the one bleeding. A gigantic harpoon was stuck in her back. I looked at her terrified and full of panic. But she didn’t seem scared. She just looked at me sad and full of sorrow. It was one of those looks I only remember from her when the light of the sun was not sparkling within the ocean. When there was water falling into the sea. Clouds blocking out the other great blue above. But this look on her face was even more intense.

 “ Aserina, I want you to dive. As deep as you can. Stay down there until you can’t hold your breath. Then return to the surface. I love you Aserina. Dive!“

Something told me I should stay with her. With my Marielle. At home. But something told me as well, and my mother told me so too, that I had to dive. As deep as I could.

“ I love you too mum. “

I took one more deep breath and dived down deep. As far as I could, as deep as I could. It became darker until I couldn’t see anything. It was scary. Minutes passed by. Nothing happened. Slowly, I realised I could not hold my breath any longer and I felt I had to return to the surface. So I swam up again and when I jumped out of the water I breathed fresh air. I dived down again and searched for my mother. But she was not there. I punched my fins on the surface. But no answer came. She was not there. I started calling for her. But she was not there. The shadow on the surface took her and she saved me when she told me to dive.

She was no more. Marielle my mother, my home, her voice, was no more. I was swimming in the crystal clear pacific. Alone. It was silent and quiet. There was no singing. Two days later a small group of humpback whales found me.

I found my way into the north. Alone. I admired the northern lights. Alone. I looked at the ice sculptures in wonder. Alone. And I met other blue whales. Later I was asked again what I want to be when I grow up. My answer didn’t change a bit. I answered as usual: “ As big and as strong as my mother. “

But from time to time I added another sentence: “ One day I do want to sing like my mother. But maybe a little bit louder. So the entire ocean can hear me. “