A Salmon Returns Poem by Robert Charles Howard

Well, I’m home again at last -
back from the salted sea
and after all that heavy finning,
I’m hot for a special date
with that little babe in pink
with spots in all the right places.

Ah, here comes the little lady now,
but what about our kids?
It’ll all be upstream for them -
DNA bound for brine and kelp -
just so much water over the

    damned if you do and
    damned if you don’t.

Bon voyage, little ones!
Watch out for Ursa’s paws
and Emeril’s lemon glaze.
Swim your bursting hearts
to the shore where seagulls swoop
and guide you out to sea
to dance the waves
with orcas, sharks and dolphins.

And what about me, you ask?
Oh, I’ll be staying home
to face that little destiny thing -
a curtain call at my original stream.

But squander no tears for my mortality
it's only what was meant to be.