my father is a halibut
My father is a Halibut
we lived on a small island in the stream
a ferry boat took us into town
on one such a day on our way to Houston
my father wordlessly jumped overboard
the ferry shipper stopped the boat
and looked, but there was no sign of him
I had the heavy task to break this news
to my mother, who walked into the kitchen
to compose herself
The noise from the kitchen sounded like
repressed laughter of relief.
Since my father was officially missing
she was still married to him, but she found
work on the mainland as a waitress
Five years later, two fishermen caught
an enormous halibut that looked human
aghast, they threw the fish overboard
The story appeared in an angler's mag
to my mother, she was not surprised
she said, your father was addicted to sex
I still try to work out what she meant
Copyright © Jan Hansen | Year Posted 2024
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