The day Isla died
There was a sighting of
A Yellow Cardinal
At an Upper Michigan backyard feeding station.
It made headlines here.
People were amazed
And cited the odds of 1 in a million
Genetic mutation.

Isla had no genetic mutations.
But a quick search shows
The odds of stillbirth
Are about one-half percent;
Higher for Hispanic and Black babies,
Less for Asians,
But about 1 in 200.

After 28 weeks gestation, the odds improve:
Only about 3 in a thousand are lost,
And after the 37th week we call them “term stillbirths.”
They are rarer still.
2.1 per 10,000. (.021%)

Three months ago, Vinnie died,
Also in the 37th week,
Also a term stillbirth,
Also absent genetic mutations.
Another .021% event.
Vinnie was my daughter’s son.
Isla was my son’s daughter.
Both gone before they got here,
In one season.

What are the odds of that in one family?
Roughly we calculate.
.021 times .021
Equals .000441:
About 4 in a million of it ever happening.

I cannot calculate the possibility
Of one family losing both
Within 3 months,
But if the data we use is annually reported,
You can divide that by a quarter of a year.
Now we can find that 1 in a million statistic.
The odds that would happen in one family are incalculable.

The headlines are rarely a couple of stillbirth obituaries
And no one is amazed.