SONNET FOR A SHARP-TOOTHED DREAMER
Star of a gnathicsnout and jutting lower jaw, scissorteeth and scaled cheeks, a chain pickerel,in a serpentine weave, parts a clusterof weeds, spies a fellow benthic dweller,a molting crustacean, toboggan downto the verdant velour bog floor. Patternedlike a rock-lined river bottom, part sun,part stone, the fork-tailed fan of an ambushwaits behind her aquatic curtain, whenthe still soft-shelled crayfish catches the light,inviting the ensorcelled piscivoreto lunge, prehistoric jaws wide anddreaming of a gorge of minnows and fry.
