Resources for Loss

“Two-Headed Calf” by Laura Gilpin, contributed by Ramon Moreno (2025)

When I came across this poem for the first time a few months ago, I immediately felt the imagery, which delivered the poem’s message in a much more impactful manner. I associate this piece with loss because its central focus is how situations can change drastically with time: while the two-headed calf is at peace with his mother tonight, by tomorrow morning he will be stripped away from his home to be gawked at by strangers. I think about the relationship between the calf and his mother, and the sense of unconditional love that a mother shows to her children. I am reminded that this calf will be loved regardless of his abnormality, and I am saddened that the only person who will love him for who he is will no longer be present by tomorrow morning, forcing the newborn calf to face the harsh criticisms of the outside world at only a day old. The final two lines are especially meaningful to me because it reminds me that silver linings can be present in any kind of situation, as the calf will appreciate his existence in full tonight despite what may be in store tomorrow. I am reminded of my own loved ones, and how time will similarly strip them away from me too, but as of now, just like the calf, I will appreciate and love them in the moment, seeing the best side of the situation as it stands. To anyone who has lost a loved one, I urge them to recall happy or peaceful moments they had with their loved ones, hold on to that memory, and understand that this memory will live forever untainted by time.   
Two-Headed Calf
by Laura Gilpin

Tomorrow when the farm boys find this
freak of nature, they will wrap his body
in newspaper and carry him to the museum.

But tonight he is alive and in the north
field with his mother. It is a perfect
summer evening: the moon rising over
the orchard, the wind in the grass. And
as he stares into the sky, there are
twice as many stars as usual.


 

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