"Fellow passengers"
for Billy.
There are two fellow passengers
in the lounge, both kept in tanks,
one is a godfish with the name jackie
the other a terrapin named turkey
they are in captivity, all thanks
to my son, Dante, whose fingers
chased after and caught four fish
in a local supermarket promotion,
I told him that it is cruel, take them back,
but he cried, and cried and got his wish,
against my heart and against all reason,
they, the four fellow passengers
were unceremoniously bagged
in plastic with little oxygen
due to stress of swirling around
and changes in temperature, three
died, and had to be flushed down
the toilet, leaving one gold fish
who had through the law of Dante's
selection, there is no comedy in that,
managed to survive, and it swims
around, prospering from the extra space,
and here is the inhumanity of it all,
I am implicated in their deaths, a face,
that of my son's outweighed their fate,
yet I had hoped, it would serve as a lesson,
my son, however wanted a replacement,
and I said no, repeatedly no, but the pet
shop was up the road, and the fish fifty
yen, but there, something caught his attention,
it was alone, why did he have to be by himself,
because very soon, upwelled a feeling of pity,
Look Daddy, Daddy a green turtle all alone,
and I said no, repeatedly said no, he cried,
and now there are two fellow passengers
in the lounge, both kept in tanks
and I am culpable, I feel responsible!
I want the goldfish to swim in the river
like its carp brothers and sisters
and as for the terrapin, once he's bigger
I'll let him go into the nearest lake, let him
free, until then, I feed them, change the waters,
take the terrapin out for exercise in the garden,
and plan when I have the money to buy tanks
that will enable them to enjoy a better quality
of life, I'd do anything for my fellow passengers.
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