“The heart of man is very much like the sea, it has its storms, it has its tides, and in its depths, it has its pearls too.” — Albert Einstein
OK, most of us have heard about the whale that passed away and washed up on Preston Beach in Marblehead. We’ve seen the news or maybe even gone down to the beach. I know I did. I saw it when it first showed up three weeks ago.
It was five houses away from my home, on my beach; no way I would miss seeing it. Eventually, with a ton of hard work and perseverance, it was towed out to sea and tied to a mooring.
Not for nothing, this is Marblehead; people wait decades for a mooring, and this creature shows up and one day later gets one? I kid, that wasn’t exactly how it went.
It was an intense few days, but the poor deceased whale was off the beach and hopefully on to a place with fair winds and following seas. Oh, fun fact: the whale’s name is Espresso because, as it turns out, the NOAA names whales.
Three weeks later, there were reports of another whale in almost the same spot. But wait a second, it looks familiar. Almost unbelievably, it was the same whale; Espresso was back! I need to find a bookie or some Las Vegas betting expert because the odds of that have to be pretty long. The first time she hit the sand, it was in Marblehead. This time, Espresso was just over the line to Swampscott.
Let the games begin. Does Marblehead now “own” the whale since we touched it first? Should we re-launch her out to sea, and maybe they attach her with a super duper sailor double knot or something this time? After what I imagine were quite a few phone calls between departments and towns, the experts decided to bury it. Rest easy, Espresso. We hardly knew ye.
But wait… there’s still more! Early reports of the first high tide after the burial said the hole had come away, and dear Espresso was again bobbing in the waves. Suddenly, social-media posts were like an online version of the old game Telephone; as each person tells the story, the details change. There were cries of “They dug too shallow,” or “They didn’t tie it up tight enough,” or “The hole didn’t come away, there are just pieces the diggers missed.” For the record, I’m writing this ahead of my deadline, so by the time this appears, there could be even more bits of information, both accurate and inaccurate.
I live two minutes from the beach. I could have gone down again to check on the poor thing, the hole, and the chum, but then I remembered that I was absent the day they taught marine biology, soil erosion, tide currents, and construction methods in kindergarten, so it’s not like I’d be able to learn much.
While it’s tragic that this poor creature had to die, I think a positive takeaway is something I’ve always known. At any given time, we either sink or swim, but we are never alone in those times, even if we think we are.
Anyone who knows me knows this is a belief I live by every day. No matter what, there are people out there who will help, who care, and who are willing to get involved. In Latin, there is an expression “Fluctuat nec Mergitur,” which translates to “She is tossed, but does not sink.”
Some might say since the whale died, she sank. I don’t see it this way. I ran into neighbors at the beach, chatting and catching up. I saw my town pull together to solve a unique problem we’d never come up against. There were cheers and tears, and sure, there was more than a bit of snark at times, but that’s to be expected. Espresso might be gone, but in going, she lifted others up.
As this story continues to evolve, perhaps we can know one thing for certain: It’s never too late to get involved, to help, to learn, and to dig deep. To all those who joined in the efforts, who stepped forward to help, and who connected a community, thank you. Peace be with you, Espresso.
Brenda Kelley Kim has lived in Marblehead for 50 years, and is an author, freelance writer, and mother of three. Her column appears weekly.