TWICE I WALKED WITH DINOSAURS
One summer we found
a dead baby shark
washed up on the beach,
cut it open with a dinner knife
[5]from the house,
and performed an
outdoor autopsy.1
As we marveled2 at its
miniature anatomy,
[10]reveled3 in the smallness
of each little organ,
seagulls circled overhead.
The ocean was quiet,
barely making waves.
[15]It kept vigil4 for its tiny causality.
The spring prior,
an alligator wandered
onto the beach during my
uncle’s second wedding.
[20]It was far enough away
to merit an absence of fear, but
nobody took photos or said
a word— we just stared
as it settled itself in the surf,
[25]hoping to be cleansed.
Question:
How do the words used to describe the speaker’s examination and reaction to the shark contribute to the tone of the passage?
