The Boat
by Paul Fisher

Maybe the eyes of a dragon or goddess
glare from the prow.

More likely it leaks, loses an oar,
and reeks of rainbows awash on a sheen
of gutted salmon and gasoline.

If it’s a liner, we lash ourselves
to whatever will float or sell.

No matter which. We choose. We’re aboard,
icebergs or no, as we plow
through the songs of the siren stars—

one boat, black water, dark whispering below.

“The Boat” was previously published in Waccamaw: a Journal of Contemporary Literature (No. 4, Fall 2009).