what fish are trying to tell us
when they gasp for air on the end of the dock

there is a place
where fishes are wishes
captured by mermaids with sweets

to slip on the hooks of fishermen

to trick sailors
into going home to their wives.

where fish lie on the dinner plates,
silver and warm from the oven.
writing love sonnets
with their tails in the sauce,

rolling their watery eyes.

& the fisherman's son cries
because the fish isn't done,
because the fish is touching the turnips.

making a mess of everything.

love dissipates like steam.
like rain, it evaporates
before it reaches the sea.

not one drop wasted.